Worth Hurting For
by mrsalicehale1
Summary: This story starts right where New Moon left off. Edward has just proposed and Bella can't seem to give him a straight answer. She just got back from Italy and is grounded until for-ev-er! Jacob isn't talking to her and to top it off Charlie and Renée decide to come clean about a huge secret they've been harboring. Can Bella deal with this new secret without her best friend?
1. In Vain

This story has been updated and tweaked a tiny bit for a couple of reasons. If you're getting emails stating a new chapter has been added I'm sorry! Make sure and check out mrsalicehale ((do))((t)) wordpress ((do))((t)) com to keep updated on everything. I add chapters there FIRST before anywhere else along with teasers for upcoming chapters, character pictures, and a blog!

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Charlie walked into the station from lunch and looked around. Usually it irritated him that he was the only back on time, but today he was elated, hoping he'd be alone when he finally heard something back. He had been speaking with a police chief in another state regarding a cold case he'd begun working on again. This case always made him emotional and he didn't like people seeing that side of him.

Charlie sat down at his computer. He hated the thing, seeing as how he'd never really learned to use it. To him it was a hindrance, as was all technology; real police work was done in the field, not on-line.

The only thing he did know how to do was check his email, because Bella had showed him one day. He clicked the familiar blue triangle icon and waited for it to boot up. The computer dinged as soon as it was on, indicating he had a new email.

He looked up and groaned. It was another message from his ex-wife. She was still trying to coordinate Bella's graduation. Seeing Renée wasn't going to be easy, but he would do it for Bella's sake. For now, though, he wasn't going to deal with this. Putting it off was what he did best and he would do just that… until she called. Besides, it was only the beginning of April and talks of graduation could wait.

He noticed another unread email from an email address he had never seen. Fumbling to open the message, he barely noticed the subject line, Lily Jane. His heart beat faster than he knew possible as he began to read.

**_Dear Chief Swan,_**

**_This is Chief Chance Taylor from North Beach, Maryland. We have spoken several times on the phone regarding a cold case you're familiar with. I believe I have some new information that could lead to her recovery and safe return home. Please call at your earliest convenience._**

**_Sincerely,_**

**_Chance E. Taylor_**

**_Police Chief_**

**_North Beach, MD_**

Charlie sat back in his chair and let out a sigh. He felt like he'd been suffocating for so long, and could finally breathe again. He began to reach for the phone when he paused, needing a minute to collect himself. A smile spread across his face as a silent tear fell; he could finally bring her home where she belonged.

He reached for the phone, dialing slowly, not completely sure he was ready for the coming conversation.

"Chance Taylor, Police Chief," Mr. Taylor said, picking up on the first ring.

"Uh, Chief Taylor. This is Chief Charlie… I mean Chief Swan. You, umm… You sent me an email earlier today," Charlie stuttered.

"Yes, of course. Chief Swan, I believe I've found her. She looks very similar to the picture you sent earlier this week, the one displaying how she would look currently, at 18," Mr. Taylor said.

"That's… that's incredible. Do you have an address?" Charlie asked, frantically searching for a pen.

"She's actually here, in the station, with me. Since I wrote you that email, one of my officers picked her up. She's a runaway," Mr. Taylor said, "the woman who adopted her called it in last night. My guys had no idea they were one and the same."

Charlie laughed, "Please give me all the information you have."

Charlie listened intently for a half hour as Chief Taylor listed all the information he had available.

"Well?" Chief Taylor questioned, as he finished.

"That's definitely her," Charlie gushed. "Now, how do I get her home?"

* * *

He slowly walked into the house, the thought of telling Bella weighing heavily on him. He placed his hat and gun holster on the coat rack by the front door. Sitting at the kitchen table, he began to dread what was to happen next. He'd had very few emotional conversations in his past and this one was shaping up to be the hardest. Telling Bella was something he'd always hoped he would have to do, but now that it was here he didn't even know where to start.

**(December 1987)**

"Charlie, I can't be married to you. You're a ghost!" Renée screamed.

Charlie simply hung his head and put his hands in his pockets. The guilt that had become his primary emotion recently reared its ugly head. This guilt was also mirrored in her face too and he knew she needed something from him he wasn't sure he could give.

Charlie knew that he was a completely different person now and it wasn't necessarily for the better. He felt totally and solely responsible for that day and it had hardened him. He used to be so fun, talkative, and goodhearted and in an instant that Charlie was gone; the instant he discovered they had both made a horrible mistake.

"Honey, we used to talk all the time," Renée said more softly, "about everything. You used to be my best friend. I don't have anyone to talk to. I'm tired of dragging everything out of you. I'm tired of getting one word answers. I'm tired of you staring at the TV instead of looking at me. I'm tired, Charlie," she choked back a sob as tears threatened to run down her cheeks.

He remained silent, with his hand in his pockets, looking anywhere but at her.

"Goddamnit Charlie, look at me!" she began screaming again, stomping her foot. Her tears were now flowing freely, anger taking over.

Charlie looked up slowly, knowing what he'd see. He would choose his words carefully, making this easier for her. If he could just betray every feeling he had for her and lie, maybe she could move on.

"I know you deserve better than me, 'Née," he said flatly, never faltering.

"That's it?" she squealed, in disbelief.

Charlie simply nodded his head, cringing, not aware she could reach that decibel.

"I know why you work all those hours. I know you think this was your fault, but it wasn't. I can't do this anymore, Charlie. We have to take care of Bella," she pleaded with him.

When Charlie had met and fallen in love with the women before him he always assumed Renée would stay in Forks forever with Charlie and grow old. However, now that they had officially reached the path of no return Charlie knew he would have to let her go, but hopefully not Bella.

"I can't do anything else until I find her. I have to know," Charlie said, walking out of the kitchen and into their tiny living room.

He had finally done it, ended their entire marriage with two small sentences. Renee took off upstairs and slammed the door to their room. She had thrown herself on the bed as he heard the frame scrape the floor above. He hastily wiped away the tear running down his cheek as he walked over to the small bassinet in the other room. He needed Bella, but Bella needed his mother now. Charlie would have to let them go if he would ever find her.

**(Present Day)**

If he'd known those were the last words he'd speak to her as his wife, he would have said so much more. At least that's what he had continued to tell himself all these years.

All that seemed so unimportant now compared to telling Bella that his parents had lied to him for so long. He would be mad at them, of course, and he had every right. They had altered so many things so she wouldn't find out, now it was time to come clean.

He heard the truck before he saw it, which brought a smile to his face. Bella would drive that thing into the ground before ever thinking about getting a new one. Being stubborn was something they definitely had in common. At least his stubbornness had finally paid off; Lily was going to get to come home.

He pulled next to the curb and took his time packing up his things to come inside. It had been raining all day, so he walked gingerly across the lawn and up the stairs. Charlie waited patiently inside, watching everything from the living room window, praying he wouldn't slip and hurt himself.

One thought was repeating itself, _How do I tell him this story?_

Bella walked in, faced Charlie, and deposited his backpack by the front door.

_This is going to suck_, he thought, looking at Bella.

"Hey, Bella. How was school?" Charlie started, hoping to keep it casual. He was having a hard time looking at him directly, nervously rubbing the back of his neck.

"Good," Bella said, with a perplexed look on his face, "Is that why you're home in the middle of the day, to ask me about school?" he smirked at Charlie skeptically.

"No. No, it's not, Bella," Charlie stated, his tone suddenly turning serious.

"Okay," he said slowly.

He swallowed hard and Charlie knew he had made him nervous.

"Well, Bella, I have something pretty important to talk to you about. It's going to be really hard to understand, especially since it's the first time you're hearing anything about it," Charlie said as quickly as possible.

"I don't really know how or where to start," he confessed.

"If this is about me still being grounded, I'm okay with it. I deserve it. As long as Edward is still allowed over, I'm okay with it," he corrected quickly.

Charlie rolled his eyes, "No, Bella. This isn't about Edward or you being grounded." _For once, this isn't about her, kid._

"Okay, sorry, just say it. I can take it," Bella said. He seemed to be trying to convince himself more than Charlie

Charlie stared at his hands.

"Well, when you were born, you had a sister. You're a twin," Charlie said, closing his eyes, waiting for the onslaught.

_There, I said it_, Charlie thought, _now here comes the hard part._

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Thanks for sticking with me! Leave me some reviews if you get a chance. xoxoxo MrsAliceHale


	2. Sorry Isn't Enough

Those words were all it took for Bella's world to come crashing down around her, and it was deafening.

Bella remained in the same position, staring at Charlie, for an unnatural amount of time. It was beginning to become uncomfortable, which their silences usually were not.

"Bella," Charlie began, "please say something. I know this is hard to process."

"Hard?" Bella bit back. "Try impossible."

The phrase seemed so simple – you're a twin – but completely ludicrous. Her brain wasn't willing to deal with something her heart knew must be true. The thing that seemed even more incomprehensible was how Charlie and Renée had lied to her. Boys are supposed to lie to you, friends are supposed to lie to you, but not your parents. They were who you run to when everyone else let you down.

"How could you keep this from me?" she protested, snapping out of her stupor.

"I know you're mad," Charlie said, getting up and pacing the living room.

"I'm in shock," she corrected, unable to stop the tears from forming. All at once it hit her. "Why are you telling me this?"

Something definitely wasn't adding up. Why would he lie to her all this time and then suddenly tell the truth? She knew that what was coming next was probably worse than finding out her parents were liars.

"There's been a recent… development," he responded. "Someone found her."

Bella's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Found her?" she questioned. "She's alive?!"

"Yes," he stated, "in North Beach, Maryland."

Somehow saying it aloud to another person made this seem that much more real. Even though he didn't want to admit it to himself, having this conversation was not something Charlie had thought he'd ever have to do.

"Tell me there's more to this story," Bella nearly shouted.

"Of course," Charlie assured. "I just don't want to tell you unless you're really ready to listen. I need you to know what happened, and I need you to understand. It's pretty important that you come to terms with this quickly. "

"I'm hanging on your every word, I promise," she snapped, bitterness seeping through her words.

"Stop with the attitude, young lady," Charlie ordered. "I know I've never been much of a father, and I'm about to tell you why. So pay attention!"

Bella's shoulders slumped as she realized how rude she was being. It was strange how quickly the anger had flared up in her. Charlie took a deep, calming breath before he began. Bella wasn't completely convinced she was ready to hear this; it seemed surreal. Of all the questions playing in her mind, one in particular was most prominent: Why had they lied for so long? Surely she had proved her maturity was beyond those of her peers.

"Okay… well… umm… I'll just start with the day you were born," Charlie said, sitting back down.

Bella sat back into the couch, getting comfortable; to hear what she hoped would be a lengthy story. Charlie was not a verbose man, but she needed to understand how two people could lie to their child for so long. Unsure that any story would make this situation okay, she was prepared to listen anyway.

"That day there was a huge storm," Charlie began. "Your mom had actually planned to have you girls in Port Angeles, but you were in a big hurry to get here." A small smile played on his lips. "We weren't making it five more minutes once the labor pains hit her, much less an hour drive up there."

"When we made it to the hospital, hardly anyone was there; they'd sent everyone home because of the storm," he explained. "Your mom was completely freaked out, but she was in too much pain to really care," Charlie continued, talking more with his hands then Bella had ever witnessed.

"There was one doctor and a nurse there, and they were the ones who delivered you guys… I mean girls," Charlie stumbled over his words. "The delivery was completely normal, everything went fine."

He stopped and swallowed the lump in his throat. The next part of this story was the hardest, and he'd never actually said it out loud to anyone, ever.

"Over the next couple of days, everyone came to see both of you," Charlie began again. "Between me and your mom, we knew everybody in town; even Billy and Rachel came down from La Push with their girls."

He stopped again, lowering his head.

Okay, here comes the hard part, Charlie thought. If you can just get through this next part, you'll be home free.

"On the day I was supposed to take you guys home, someone went into the nursery and took Lily, your sister. The nurse said some woman came in, said she taking Lily to your mom, and left," Charlie looked back at Bella, tears in his eyes.

Bella was taken aback by the depth of emotion there. He had only ever acted like that twice that she remembered; once when she left to go back to Arizona and the other when she returned from Italy. She knew Charlie loved her, but the depth of that love always surprised her. It was strange to know that that love extended to another person – her sister.

"The weirdest thing was she knew your mom's name," he continued. "The nurse didn't recognize her but assumed it was someone from your mom's side."

"No one other than that nurse saw her. For all we know, she just walked right out the front doors, and no one stopped her." Charlie shook his head, trying to rid himself of that memory. Maybe now he wouldn't have to relive that traumatic day again.

"When I got to the room, everyone from the station was there, asking your mom questions. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, all dressed and ready to go, rocking back and forth with you in her lap," Charlie shuddered. "It was surreal, being on the other side of that situation, being questioned like that."

He sighed heavily. "After that day, something in me snapped. I became obsessed. It didn't help that after a little while, everyone else was starting to act like there was no hope. It was like she had never been there. I started to feel crazy," he admitted with a smirk. "I probably acted a little crazy too."

He immediately remembered the days when anything and everything could set him off. It had gotten to the point where no one would work with him. That's when he started to get quiet. At least when he was quiet, people could handle being around him.

For a while, the anger had been just beneath the surface, but after a while it had been replaced with sadness – a sadness that never seemed to go away. After Renée and Bella left, that sadness was accompanied by a profound loneliness.

"That's why your mom and I couldn't be together," Charlie explained. "I wasn't ever home. I never helped her. I was beside myself with worry, trying to figure out any piece of this crazy mystery; none of it was making sense."

Charlie stopped speaking, hoping to give Bella a chance to ask questions. She continued to stare at the blank television screen, never giving any indication that she had even been listening.

"Bella?" Charlie said, reaching out and touching her leg.

She immediately looked down at his hand and then slowly up at him.

"Okay," she choked out, the emotion clear in her voice, "but how did you find her?"

Suddenly, Charlie's enthusiasm was clear on his face, and she was excited for him. It was clear that he was overjoyed, that a weight had been lifted from him, but she was still completely disoriented by the situation. How was she expected to deal with this and so suddenly?

The anger was starting to subside as she realized that she wasn't the only one who had been lied to. At least she knew who her real parents were. Somewhere, at the other end of the country, was a girl just as scared as her, being told the same story.

"Well," Charlie responded with a smile, "Every year, I send out an updated picture, of what she could look like to the Missing and Exploited Children's headquarters. They distribute the picture to every state, making at least that part a little easier on me."

"About two weeks ago," Charlie continued, "I got a call from the police chief in North Beach, Maryland. He'd been looking through the Missing Children's stuff he had received, and he knew a girl in his neighborhood that looked very much like that picture. The hair color was all wrong, but everything else was uncanny. He started out small, just questioning her parents," Charlie revealed.

"He knew something was up, because the minute he started mentioning the word ‛adoption,' they clammed up, refusing to talk at all. The more he kept digging, the more certain he was that he was on to something. Even if it wasn't Lily, she was definitely not their kid."

"Come to find out there were no adoption records and no birth certificate for her – not a valid one, anyway," Charlie continued. "The one they had produced turned out to be a fake."

"Anyway, a couple of days ago she ran away from home, and the police department there picked her up," Charlie said, putting his hands on his knees. "She still won't tell them why she ran away, leading them to believe that her adoptive parents were abusive in some way."

Charlie bowed and shook his head at that thought. If this turned out to be the case, he didn't know what he'd do.

"They decided to try and take a blood sample to see if it was really, truly Lily. I couldn't bring her home on a picture and a hunch," Charlie explained. "The tests proved that it is your sister."

He stopped, took a breath, and looked at Bella. It was apparent that she was completely in shock. Charlie remained quiet as she processed the information.

"Well," Bella started, "is that it?"

"Umm… no," Charlie stuttered. "I told you all that because she's coming here . . . to live with us."

The absurdities just kept coming. How could Charlie expect her to be okay with everything he had just told her? Hey, by the way, your mom and I have lied to you your whole life, you have a sister, and she's coming to live with us. Try as she might, she couldn't be as angry as she felt she was entitled to be. All she could think about was the fact that there was a girl in North Beach, Maryland, who was probably just as scared as Bella was angry.

She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and faced Charlie.

Opening her eyes, she saw her dad's loving and scared expression. "All right, when will she be here?" Bella whispered.

Charlie's eyes grew big as he comprehended exactly what she had said. A smile crept onto his face, reaching his eyes, as a tear slid down his cheek.

"She'll be here in two days," he said softly. "Thank you for being okay with this."

She got up from the couch. "I guess I have to be, don't I?" Bella stated simply.

She walked to the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, and started making dinner like it was any other night. Thoughts were whirling through her head at an alarming rate. Charlie got up from his chair and walked into the kitchen behind her, leaning against the wall.

"I hope one day you can forgive me for all this, Bells," he said, his voice cracking. "At least that would make one of us."

He continued through the kitchen, up the stairs, and to his bedroom. When she heard the door close, Bella instantly broke into tears. She slid down the cabinets to the floor, where she rested her head on her knees. She was sobbing quietly when the phone rang. She got off the floor, wiped her face, and picked up the receiver.

As she placed it to her ear, she noticed that Charlie had already answered it and was talking. She was about to hang up when she recognized Renée's voice on the other end.

"Yes," Charlie said, his voice still cracking, "I told her."

"Is she mad?" Renée asked.

Bella held her breath as she listened to their private conversation.

"Yeah, she's mad," he stated plainly. "I just wish I had figured out sooner that I could look for Lily and be a good father to Bella at the same time."

Bella replaced the receiver and walked upstairs to the bathroom. Edward would be there soon, and she wasn't ready to have this conversation with him just yet. She splashed cool water on her face, attempting to fix her blotchy complexion.

She grabbed a towel and began patting her face dry when the doorbell rang. Charlie was still talking to Renée as she walked downstairs. She opened the door and looked up into the most beautiful face she had ever seen.

His smile faded quickly as he took in her expression. "Bella," Edward said, sounding concerned. "What's wrong?"

Bella immediately broke down again.

Edward scooped her up in his arms, carrying her to the table, and placing her in his lap as he sat down. He began rubbing the top of her head, placing small kisses there.

As the sobs quieted, Edward reached under her chin, lifting it up.

"Sweetheart, please tell me what's wrong," he pleaded.

"It's a long story," Bella said, looking down again.

"I have all the time in the world," he said, chuckling.

A small smile played on her lips as she spoke. "Later, I promise. I need to fix dinner now," she said, getting up and pushing her hair out of her face.

"Later then," he said, frowning, as she began to gather what she needed.

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	3. Lily

IEdward remained as quiet as possible, leaving Bella to her thoughts, as she hurried around the kitchen. It was obvious she was flustered as she'd almost dropped the spaghetti sauce twice now. Any other time he would have laughed at her clumsiness, but sensing just how serious the situation, it was hardly funny.

All he could hear from Charlie's thoughts upstairs was why? and how? As usual, the only thoughts ever heard from him were those that he thought the loudest and they never were complete. While at times it was nice to give Bella her privacy, at other times, like this time for instance, it was maddening. She was hurting, that much was obvious, and he hated not being able to do anything about it.

His cell phone vibrated in his pocket, abruptly removing him from that train of thought. He looked down and noticed a text message from Alice. He smiled while reading; asking Alice should have been the first thing he'd done when he'd seen Bella in this state. She could always see, good or bad, what was happening to Bella. That was as long as her best friend, Jacob Black, was not involved in that future.

The fact that Jacob Black was now her best friend was another maddening situation. Edward had been the reason they had ever formed that relationship. It was his fault that their connection had become imperative to Bella's survival and mental state. As Bella had so mildly put it once, "I have no idea what state you would have found me in without him putting me back together after you left."

He looked up from his phone noticing she had stopped fixing dinner and was leaning over the counter. He got up and stood behind her.

"Bella, honey, please tell me what's going on," he said, practically begging. "You know I hate seeing you like this." He knew the pain was evident on his face and he hoped it would cause her to reveal what was going on.

She sighed heavily, turned around, and fell into him. He quickly wrapped his arms around her, holding her upright as she started sobbing again. He knew she hated crying in front of anyone, as she assumed it meant she was weak. Whatever was wrong had to be terrible. The only other time he'd seen her like this was through Jacob's thoughts in response to Edward leaving her.

He had damaged the one he loved. This was something he now feared may be unforgivable, despite Bella's reassurance that it was not. He continued to hold her as the sobs quieted. She pulled away from his shirt and looked up. Even though she had promised him he wasn't the monster he made himself out to be, it still surprised him to look into those eyes and see the depth of love swimming in her soul. He may not be able to read her mind, but her emotions had always been apparent on her face.

"I'm sorry I messed up your shirt," she said, looking down and attempting to wipe away the wet spot.

Edward chuckled. "Bella my dear, you have nothing to be sorry for. I just wish I could help."

She sighed heavily before looking up at him again. "I wish you could too, Edward. Believe me."

She lingered there momentarily, staring into his eyes, before turning around to the counter. Edward returned to his normal spot at the table.

Charlie stomped downstairs, his thoughts but mere whispers now, humming quietly to himself. He turned the corner into the kitchen and stopped, noticing Edward there.

"What's on the agenda tonight, kids?" Charlie said. He was being more polite than normal, which worried Edward more. Apparently Charlie was the one in trouble, not Edward. Unfortunately this only confused him more. What could he have possibly done to make Bella this distraught?

"Well, Charlie," Edward began, "I brought a fresh batch of college applications for Bella to fill out."

"Oh, that reminds me," Charlie said. He walked into the hallway and returned with a large manila envelope.

He handed Bella the package. "You got a letter from The University of Alaska Southwest."

Bella yanked the envelope from Charlie and hurried to open it. She pulled out a letter and a folded schedule of courses. She grinned proudly as she began to read.

"I got accepted," she whispered.

"Congratulations honey," Charlie said, wrapping Bella quickly in a hug. "I'm so proud of you."

He pulled back, both were still smiling, but the tension was also written their faces. Charlie rocked back and forth on his heels, standing next to Bella. It was strange to see them so uncomfortable in each other's presence.

"Well . . . I'm just going to go watch my game," Charlie said, pointing to the TV. "Remember ten-thirty, you two."

He huffed in Edward's general direction as he passed, continuing to the living room, where he retreated to his recliner. At least his politeness hadn't lasted long. Whatever they were upset about Charlie still remembered the revolting state Edward had left his daughter in. If Charlie was anything, he was a good father and Edward was happy he wasn't the only one looking out for her. She could use all the help she might get.

The microwave dinged, shaking Bella from her reverie. She laid her acceptance package on the counter, removed the spaghetti sauce, and poured it over the noodles. She grabbed two plates, pausing momentarily before returning one back to its place in the cupboard.

"Dad, dinner's ready," she shouted in Charlie's direction before sitting across from Edward at the table.

"You're not eating?" Edward said quietly, concern written on his beautiful features.

"I don't feel like eating," she stated simply. "Besides, don't I have more college applications to fill out?"

He pushed them towards her, deciding it was better not to pick a fight. He had been in a constant state of worry since he met Bella, but he had been always aware of what was bothering her in the past. The helplessness he felt now was overpowering. He chose not to dwell on it, picking up the newspaper and trying to distract himself. Since he was not actually intending to read it, he was surprised when the headline actually captured his attention.

Death Toll On The Rise,

Police Fear Gang Activity

As he continued to read, he was disgusted. A monster was loose in Seattle, a monster just like him; and if it continued they would need to intercede before the Volturi deemed it necessary. He put the paper back down, refusing to read any more and looking to Bella. A smile crept across his face as he looked at hers. The beauty that radiated from her never ceased to amaze him. Perhaps what made her more beautiful was her inability to recognize it in herself. Although, he wished she realized it even if only slightly; a beauty as elegant as she deserved to know it.

As long as he could keep this from her, she wouldn't feel the need to turn into one of those monsters. She would use this as an excuse for turning into one sooner than he was willing to deal with. Keeping this from her was his one and only priority and distraction would be his weapon of choice. The thing bothering her now would keep her occupied. As soon as he left he would call Alice and find out what was so distressing to Bella. She looked up from her application, smiling slightly, and turned to Edward.

"Dartmouth?" she said, amused. "There is no way, Edward."

"There are always . . . exceptions," he said, winking.

She huffed at his comment, returning to her miserable mood. She was more like her father than she would probably care to admit in this moment. Stubbornness ran in her family in all forms. She folded her arms across her chest and sighed heavily. He noticed the tears were starting to well up in her eyes. He panicked, quickly changing the subject once again.

"Alice has been wondering if you would be up for shopping sometime soon," he said, choosing his words carefully. "She seems to think that you are in need of a new dress for graduation."

She unfolded her arms, placing them on the table, and then folding them across her chest again. She seemed at a loss for words, torn between hating all forms of shopping and wanting desperately to leave the house.

"I'm still grounded, Edward," she said bitterly.

Charlie turned around, facing them. "You could go shopping with Alice . . . if you . . . if you want Bells," he stuttered.

She turned around in her chair, facing Charlie. "Oh, so my grounding only applies to him," she said, pointing to Edward.

"Well . . . no," Charlie said, swallowing hard. "I just thought you might deserve some freedom. You've definitely earned it."

She turned around slowly, as did Charlie. "I'd love to. I'll call Alice later."

Edward chuckled softly as Bella's phone started ringing. They should have known Alice would see her decision. She got up from the table and walked over to the receiver.

"Hello Alice," she said, answering the phone and rolling her eyes. "Oh Mom, sorry . . . Yeah, Dad's right here."

Charlie jumped from his recliner and walked swiftly towards the phone. Edward looked at Charlie, perplexed as he picked the receiver out of Bella's hands. He was never in any hurry to talk to his ex-wife and often asked Bella to tell her he wasn't home. This was definitely a change, but not one that Bella should or would be upset about. Bella returned to the table and picked up another application.

"Hey 'née," Charlie mumbled, "let me call you right back from the upstairs phone." He promptly hung up the phone, not allowing her to answer.

"You two behave. I'll be upstairs talking to your mom." He said, waiting for a response from Bella, but she continued to fill out her paperwork without even acknowledging that he had said anything. Charlie's look of defeat covered his features before he continued upstairs.

Edward turned to Bella who had now taken to ignoring him as well. Whatever was wrong was bad, because she never treated her father that way. At that moment, his cell phone vibrated in his pocket again.

-Please come home-

If the message wasn't alarming enough, the fact that it Carlisle had sent it was enough to make him realize it was serious. He couldn't leave Bella like this though, or could he? Bella was a grown woman after all and his inability to let her make her own decisions and deal with things is what had gotten him in trouble recently. Besides, Carlisle would have mentioned something if whatever was so urgent was life-threatening to Bella.

Edward looked up and met Bella's questioning expression. He simply smiled at her which he was sure was hardly fair. She instantly fell into one of the stupors always caused by his smile. Once she had claimed that he "dazzled" her, and knowing this, he used it to his advantage but only in those situations most dire. Unfair was hardly the word.

He chuckled. "Well, dear, I have to go," he announced, taking her hand in his. "I'll be back before you know it." He placed a light kiss on it before getting up.

"Who was that?"

"That was Carlisle. He needs me at home to help with something," Edward said, shrugging his shoulders, trying to appear nonchalant.

"Okay," she said, lowering her head.

He came around the table, picking up her chin in his hands, forcing her to look at him. "I will be back shortly. I promise," he said, kissing her on the tip of her nose.

She smiled slightly as he walked to the door. She watched him leave before getting up from the table leaving the papers scattered there. Bella trudged up the stairs into her room falling onto her bed. She didn't even care enough to change her clothes.

Edward watched her retreat to her room before he got into his car and raced home. As was custom for him, he drove home at an alarming speed. Recently, everything seemed to be turned on its head. He knew that everything couldn't go back to exactly the way it was before he left. There were consequences to his horrible actions. Edward hoped whatever he was racing home to find out had nothing to do with what he saw in the newspaper. Hopefully, it was exactly what the local authority feared, a serial killer, and not what Edward feared, another kind of monster loose and too close to home.

Carlisle's text message had him on edge as he turned down the familiar path to his home. Alice was waiting for him on the steps with her head in her hands. Jasper was with her, of course, rubbing her back, although that was not where the soothing power would come from. She craved his touch so it helped nonetheless.

Edward quickly scanned everyone's thoughts as he got out of the car in the driveway. Everyone was thinking about something different in an attempt to block him out. He reached Alice and Jasper on the stairs outside the front door, taking Alice's hand and walking inside.

Rosalie and Emmett were seated on the couch and Esme and Carlisle were in front of the television facing them. Jasper took a seat in the nearest chair and Alice sat in his lap. Edward walked to sit next to Emmett who looked somber as he patted Edward's back. Edward slowly faced Carlisle nervously awaiting what was to be said next.

"Well now that everyone is here," Carlisle began, "I think it's time everyone was clued in to the current situation."

"First, there is what Jasper and I believe to be a newborn vampire loose in Seattle. I have been following the news closely relating to that area and I fear that it can be nothing else. The problem we face is that if the Volturi fear that it will expose our world, they will send members of the guard to correct the problem," Carlisle announced, turning to face Edward directly.

"The problem with this, as you know, son, is that with the guard being so close, they will inevitably check in on our family and Bella's condition. We assumed when you made that promise, we would have far longer to follow through before we would be held accountable. That is no longer the case," he stopped, facing the room as a whole again.

"We have several options relating to this. We can go over them shortly. Alice has not seen the Volturi making any sort of decision or even indicating they are aware of the newborn issue in Seattle. Right now, I believe Alice would like to speak with everyone regarding something she has seen on a different subject," he finished, motioning for Alice to begin.

Alice slowly got up from Jasper's lap, looking to him for reassurance before speaking. It was Edward's turn to put his head in his hands. He was not looking forward to turning Bella into the monster that he was. She was too pure a person to corrupt in that manner. Spending eternity with her was something he craved, but not at the expense of her soul. He knew his selfishness would win in the end as the Volturi had been promised that she would, in fact, be changed.

"Well today around one this afternoon I saw a vision of Bella," she began. Edward immediately looked towards Alice. "She was walking around school introducing a small, blonde girl to everyone. She kept saying, 'This is my sister, Lily'."

Alice let that sink in as Edward continued to stare at her with a look of confusion etched on his face. She continued.

"Obviously, I went to Carlisle and we started to look up Bella's birth certificates and things of that nature."

Alice stopped and looked to Carlisle for how to continue. When she didn't, Carlisle returned to the head of the conversation. He held Alice's hand as he began to speak. She did not like causing him pain so whatever she was having trouble saying would do just that.

"What we discovered was that her original birth certificate listed her as multiple or twin," Carlisle stated, looking to Edward also.

He leaned back into couch with his hands over his mouth. He remained motionless while Alice went to sit beside him. She quietly took his hand and looked up at him. Edward slowly looked over meeting her eyes.

"How could I not know this?" he asked, obviously taken aback.

"Well, she didn't even know it," Alice reassured.

"But how did no one, in all our time here, ever think about this once? She is the police chief's daughter. This had to have been a big deal," he questioned.

"I feel that the town as a whole respected Charlie and Renée's privacy and it has been quite a while since anyone has even heard anything about it," Carlisle said.

"Regardless, this is happening and I assume Bella is quite distraught," Esme said softly, speaking to Edward.

Edward looked around at his family one by one. They were all there to support him and once again he felt as if it was not deserved. They were there for him, but who was there for Bella? She was the one in emotional turmoil. She had just been delivered news that went against everything she knew of her parents and her childhood.

Receiving a new sibling in his family was always a joyous occasion around their household. It meant that someone else viewed their lifestyle as suitable and enjoyable, or in Jasper's case, at least tolerable.

In Bella's case, it meant of things would be changing drastically and possibly not for the better. This new person was completely foreign to Bella, Charlie, and their way of life. This could be a good thing or a very, very bad thing.

Hopefully, for Bella's sake, it would be a good thing. The way her luck was running as of late, probably not.

"Well," Edward said, quietly, "What can we do to help her with this?"

Everyone looked to Carlisle for the answer. He spoke carefully and calmly.

"I suppose we should all be prepared for any mood this may cause in Bella or any changes. She is still the same person we all love and for that we must respect her privacy. She may choose to open up to all of us or none of us," he said, looking to Edward, "and for that we must be ready."

Everyone shook their heads and then looked to Edward. He slowly got up from the couch and headed for the stairs. No one but Alice dared approach him which always made him smile. He turned to her, assuming she was going to say something to reassure him that everything would be okay as she did so often.

"I'm here for you Edward, we all are," she said, hugging him.

"I know that Alice," he said, before turning and walking to his room. He would need to compose himself as he would return to Bella shortly. He was to be there for her, as Carlisle had put it, in any way she needed. Even if that meant he wasn't the one she opened up to. He feared that might be the case, but what scared him more was who he thought she would call on instead.

* * *

Charlie opened his eyes and was confused with his new surroundings. It took him mere seconds to comprehend where he was, in Bella's room, or his new room rather. It was so surreal to him how much had changed in the last three days.

Bella and Charlie had switched rooms as his was bigger. He had also purchased another twin mattress set to go next to Bella's, with sheets and a comforter that Alice had picked out. Edward had become a permanent fixture, more than he already was anyway, and Charlie hardly had a say in it. How could he? He had turned Bella's life upside down and she'd been so understanding, or at least pretended that she was.

He got up and started to get dressed. He had laid out his clothes last night in anticipation for today. Nervousness had taken over as his primary emotion starting last night around six o'clock. He'd taken sleeping medication just to calm his nerves. It allowed him two solid hours of sleep before he was awake again. Granted, it was only five in the morning, but lying in the bed was just not something he could do anymore. He would go get a cup of coffee from the diner or something, anything else but staying in bed and waiting.

Today was the day he was going to pick up and Lily and by now the entire town knew it. He was both scared and excited at revealing this news to his friends and coworkers. A small smile played on his lips as well, as he started to think of how relieved he now felt. He finished getting ready and headed to Bella's room to check on her. Peeking his head in, he noticed she was still sleeping. She had opted not to join him, saying she was going to be there to show Lily around on her first day of school at Forks High School instead. Charlie hoped that they would get along, not needing the stress that it would put on any of them if they didn't.

He continued downstairs and outside, stopping to get his coat and keys. He locked the door behind him and headed towards his car. He got into his police cruiser and turned on the radio. The silence would not suit him today. He pulled out of the driveway and pointed his car towards the diner. When he arrived, there was only one other car in the parking lot and he knew that car well. She was the town gossip, being the waitress at the only diner in town it was hard not to be; she heard everything.

He turned off his car and walked inside slowly, dreading the questions he knew were coming. Surprisingly, when the bell rang announcing his arrival she didn't even look up to see who it was. He took his normal seat by the window and waited for her to take his order.

She strolled over from the counter smiling. She pulled her pad and pencil out of her apron.

"Hello Chief," she said. "What can I get you this morning?"

He rattled off his usual order without even looking at the menu. Surprisingly, she looked up at him, smiled, and returned to the counter, but not before relaying his order to Devon, the cook. Hopefully everyone would be so nice as to give him his privacy regarding this situation, at least today. He doubted that would be the case, but he could always hope. His nerves were not going to make him a very social person today.

She returned with his order quicker than he thought possible. As often as he came, he shouldn't be surprised, especially since there was no one else there. He smiled up at her before grabbing a fork. She walked back to the counter and he began to eat with more of an appetite than he was aware he had at the moment.

He finished his meal quietly thinking of what he would say to Lily the first time he saw her again and how the conversation would play out. He didn't even know her, how she would react to him or her new surroundings. It would break his heart if he found out any harm had come to her from the couple that adopted her. He sincerely hoped that wasn't the case, for their sake and his.

He finished, wiped his mouth, pushed the plate back, threw down the usual amount, and walked out the door without even a wave. He was too distracted for common courtesies today; everyone would just have to understand.

He got back in his car and turned the radio up louder before pulling out onto the road and heading for the interstate. Seattle always seemed a long drive, but today it seemed hours away. Being left to his thoughts was usually something he appreciated, but in his current state he felt this may not be a good idea.

Without even being aware, he arrived in Seattle, first noticing as he hit the outer edges of the city. As some of the larger buildings came into view, he began to notice just how nervous he was, as his hands were actually shaking on the steering wheel. He directed the car towards the airport and began to sweat.

He arrived at the airport and found a parking spot near the luggage pick up area. He got out slowly, taking a deep breath, and walking towards the entrance. He decided to stay near the luggage area as meeting her at the gate may seem too overwhelming, whether that was to him or to her, he wasn't sure.

He went from sitting to standing several times over the next half hour. He even began to pace as he neared the hour mark. He knew he was early, but that wasn't calming him down a bit. As nine o' clock rolled around, he began rubbing his palms against his jeans repeatedly.

As the conveyer belt sprang to life, Charlie jumped from his seat as if an alarm had gone off. People began filling in around it and he starting looking for the girl Chief Taylor had described. Charlie was on his toes looking over everyone when he spotted her. A smile broke out on his lips and the nervousness faded away. He walked through the crowd to the little girl he had finally found.

She was bobbing her head along an unknown song. As he got closer, he noticed she had ear buds in and was blocking everything out. As not to frighten her, he tapped her on the shoulder. She immediately removed one looking his way. She smiled at him before looking down. It was apparent she was shy or maybe scared. Charlie wasn't sure yet.

What he was sure of though, was the fact that she had entirely too much makeup on. No child should even own that much makeup. He quickly corrected himself acknowledging sadly that she was not a child, she was a young woman, and an adult legally; she was free to wear as much make up as she wanted. Even if it bothered her father greatly.

"Hi Lily," he said, extending his hand. "I'm Charlie."

She looked up and shook his hand, removing it quickly. She looked back down at her shoe, which she was moving back and forth in front of her. It gave him time to assess the small girl before him. She had blonde hair on top and black hair near the bottom. It was an obvious dye job as both colors were an unnatural shade.

She was wearing a small, white spaghetti strap tank top and a very tattered pair of jeans. A small, wooden cross necklace dangled down in front of her. Charlie was not sure he approved of any of her attire, but chalked it up to the fact that Bella wore nothing like this and he just wasn't used to it.

"Well, which bags are yours?" he said, trying very hard not to let his disapproval in her appearance leak into his voice.

"Mine are bright green," Lily said softly, not looking up.

Charlie moved towards the conveyer belt through the crowd looking for bright green bags. He spotted them instantly and picked them up. She only had two small suitcases which surprised him. He laughed to himself as he realized it shouldn't, when he had come to pick Bella up she only had two small bags as well, hers being less flamboyant though.

He would have to learn not to compare the two so much. He needed to realize that they were two separate people who had lead separate lives until now. That thought saddened him as he wished this wasn't the case, but it was and everyone would just have to deal with it; starting with him.

He walked with the suitcases over to where Lily was standing with one ear bud hanging down in front of her. She had yet to look up so Charlie concluded scared was probably a better description of her mood. He lightly touched her hand which caused her to look up at him.

"Are you ready?" he said, motioning towards the door.

She took a deep breath and sighed. "As ready as I'm gonna be." She smiled and looked ahead as they began to walk toward the car.

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	4. Jaded

The ride home was shaping up to be a silent one. Every question Charlie had asked was met by Lily with yes and no answers, none of which seemed rude in any way; it was just apparent that Lily was a shy girl. She still had one ear bud placed in her ear, and Charlie could vaguely hear what she was listening to. He was relieved it wasn't anything that involved rock guitars or screaming voices.

"How was school going in Maryland, Lily?" Charlie looked over at her quickly and then back to the road.

She just shrugged, never looking from the window. Charlie had never talked this much in a long time. He was definitely not used to being the one to carry a conversation. A smile played on his lips as he realized how frustrated others must feel when talking to him. He stole another glance and noticed her expression didn't appear sad or upset, and for that he was thankful.

They pulled into the Forks High School parking lot, and he put the police cruiser in park. He mentally scolded himself for bringing this vehicle. It had just dawned on him that maybe Lily wouldn't want such a blazing introduction to the town of Forks. Fortunately, no one had taken to gawking or pointing as they entered town.

"You know you don't have to go to school today," he stated plainly. "You can always wait until next week… or whenever you're ready."

He took to biting the inside of his lip as she started stowing all of her belongings into the back pack she had brought with her. She shook her head and turned to him, smiling.

"No. It's fine. I'll be fine," she replied, turning back to her back pack. She patted it twice as she moved for the door handle.

Charlie turned slowly to mimic her movements, opening his own door. He stepped out and watched her carefully over the top of the cruiser. He was determined to make her stay home at the first sign that she didn't want to be there. To this point, he had seen none. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or distraught. He had _just _picked her up, and he didn't know if he was ready to share her with the world yet.

They walked in silence toward the large double doors leading to the front office. He held it open for her, and she stepped underneath his arm and into the old school. The smell of mold and sweat brought back memories for Charlie as they stepped together over the threshold of the office. Charlie pointed toward a seat by the window for Lily to sit in before walking up to the desk with his hands in his pockets.

"Hey, Amanda," he started. "Is Mrs. Freeman here?"

Charlie was attempting to peer past the small girl for Mrs Freeman. In the same instant, Amanda was attempting to peer past Charlie for a look at Lily. Charlie's defensive instincts kicked in as he whirled around to see how Lily was interpreting the attention. To his relief, she had stuffed both ear buds in her ears and had her eyes closed. She had been oblivious to the whole exchange.

Charlie glared down at Amanda. "Um, I'll go get her," she answered quickly, scurrying away. Charlie folded his arms over his chest. He hoped desperately that the kids at Forks High wouldn't be mean to Lily. He didn't know a lot about her, but knew no kid in her situation deserved to have any ill-will directed toward her.

Charlie started toward the bulletin board on his left, wanting to distract himself with the latest school news while he waited.

"Charlie," Mrs. Freeman's voice rang out. "How are you?"

He turned quickly to meet her smiling face with a smile of his own.

"I'm good," he swallowed. "Good."

He pointed toward Lily. She simply nodded and motioned with her head toward the other end of the long desk. She pushed a set of papers toward him.

"I'm a little concerned, Charlie," she began, her brow furrowed. "If you look here, you can see the list of classes she's taken."

He met her eyes with a look of confusion and a shrug.

"My problem is that these are all sophomore classes. She hasn't taken anything higher. She's not behind," she corrected herself in a hurry. "She didn't start school until 1994, which means that instead of her being 5 when she started school she was 7."

Charlie pursed his lips, utterly confused by what this could mean. He turned to Lily, who still had her eyes closed and her head now propped up against the window behind her. He racked his brain a couple of seconds longer for an explanation before turning back to Margaret.

"Margie," Charlie started, using her nickname. "Is there anything we can do? I don't want her to be so behind everyone else her age. She's already at a disadvantage starting this late in the school year."

She held up her index finger, a smirk playing on her lips. She picked up another pile of papers from the small desk behind her.

"Here," she laid it in front of him. "This is a placement test she can take. If she can pass it, she can start class with the seniors tomorrow and then graduate on time in May."

He took a deep breath, wanting desperately to call Renée so she could give him some insight into what needed to be done here. He shrugged and then nodded to Mrs. Freeman, who stacked all the papers together and headed out from behind the desk. Charlie followed closely behind her as she neared Lily. She must have felt everyone's eyes on her as she opened one of her own. She smiled up at the pair and removed both ear buds.

"This is Mrs. Freeman, Lily." Charlie motioned toward the Mrs. Freeman, who extended her hand. Lily took it and shook before replacing both hands in her lap.

"She needs you to take some tests before you can start class. Is that okay?" he questioned, not knowing what would set her off.

Her confusion matched his from moments ago as she stood up, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. "Sure," she mumbled slowly.

Mrs. Freeman motioned for Lily to follow her into a small room off the main office. Lily did so without so much as a glance back at Charlie, who was growing progressively more nervous. He sat down in the chair Lily had just occupied and began to rub his hands nervously on his jeans.

He shifted his position in the chair many times in an attempt to get comfortable. He even tried standing a couple of times and trying to read the fliers on the walls before ultimately giving up and sitting in the chair again. Lily's test took a grand total of two hours and forty-three minutes, and Charlie had counted every one.

Mrs. Freeman and Lily emerged together, smiling and laughing. Their laughter had Charlie grinning, as he was happy Lily wasn't always a shy person. Mrs. Freeman winked as soon as he caught her eye, and he took that as a good sign.

"Bring her back tomorrow, and we'll get her all set up," Margaret stated, giving a thumbs up to Charlie as Lily turned around and headed for the door.

A comfort washed over Charlie, as he was happy that this was one less thing he would have to worry about. He now knew that Lily would open up a little if prodded enough, as he was sure Mrs. Freeman had done. He made a mental note to have Lily explain why she had the first two years of her schooling postponed. The puzzle that was Lily's former life would come together soon enough.

They walked back out of the front doors and down the sidewalk. Charlie's hands had become permanent fixtures in his pockets, as he didn't know where else to put them. Silence was the foundation in their relationship, albeit a strange one. He hoped he could make more progress with Lily than he'd ever made with Bella as a teenager.

"So… um… We'll go to the house. You can unpack, and I'll show you your room," he began, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "Are you hungry?"

She just shook her head and hopped into the passenger side of the police cruiser. Once again, she didn't appear angry, upset, or sad… content seemed a better description. He prayed that his impression was correct as he took his place behind the wheel.

* * *

He knew he was probably staring, but he couldn't help watching her as she walked through the small living room, apparently entranced by the many pictures that lined the walls. He walked around her as she stopped in front of one particular picture and continued on his way to his favorite chair.

The silence was deafening, and she made no movement to join him. The lack of conversation, for once, was not comforting to Charlie… it was maddening. He needed answers to his questions, though he knew some he would be too afraid to ask right away.

He coughed quietly, hoping to break whatever trance she had entered into. Thankfully, she turned slowly away from the picture to face him. He motioned for her to sit on the couch, and she obliged. She stared at him with waiting eyes as Charlie searched for the right words to begin.

"I… um…," he stuttered. "Do you know why you… um… had to take that test?"

She shook her head and offered no further insight or comment on the topic. He huffed slightly as he realized this was going to be more difficult than he had hoped. She wasn't going to offer any help to him, as Bella often did. He finally decided that just laying it all out there might be his best bet. It'd be like removing a band-aid; the quicker the better.

"You were actually two grades behind where you were supposed to be. For some reason, you didn't start school until you were 7. Did your.. um.. Mom ever give you any explanation?" he spat out.

She shook her head, her eyes seeming to scan his face for answers. "You mean I'm not 16?"

Her voice was so quiet that Charlie almost didn't hear it. Things were slowly falling into place, and he was utterly taken aback. She thought she was two years younger than she really was. He repeated that sentence over and over in his head. There was no rational reason why two people would hold their seemingly bright child back an entire two years and then lie to that child. He shook his head as she continued to search for her own answers in the wood grain beneath their feet.

"Lily." He reached over and touched her leg – his attempt at being reassuring. "You're actually 18."

Her eyes shot up to his face. "18?!" she screeched. "I'm already 18?"

Charlie nodded and cringed; he had heard that screech before in this house. The more she began to talk, the more he noticed that she sounded exactly like Renée. He wanted to smile as the familiar voice sounded in his memories, but he suppressed it, knowing that Lily was facing a new world and realizing her old life was riddled with lies.

"Yes, I'm afraid so," Charlie stated, removing his hand. "We can always throw you a big birthday party. Alice is really good at those."

His smile was becoming harder to hide as he congratulated himself for thinking of a way to make Lily feel better about the news.

As usual, his initial assumption of what would make the women in his life happy could not have been further off the mark.

"A party?" she shot back; sarcasm laced her words. "A party is going to make this all better?"

Her arms were now folded over her chest, and Charlie was growing nervous again. He had messed up, and he didn't think he could backtrack quickly enough to stop this train wreck.

"And who is Alice?" she scoffed; emphasizing Alice's name with disdain.

"Alice is Edward Cullen's sister. He is your sister Bella's boyfriend," Charlie said quietly. He didn't like this side of Lily, but he could hardly be upset about it. He was starting to realize that Lily had been lied to much more than Bella had been, and about truly fundamental things. He had been comparing the two girls since the moment he met Lily, and he needed to realize that she was acting like any normal teenager in this situation – probably better than most would.

"Bella is my sister," she stated, breaking his train of thought.

She seemed in awe at this news as well. It had to be mind-boggling to realize you had a whole other family you had never known anything about. Charlie hated feeling that he and Lily were starting off on the wrong foot. He hated it more that he didn't know how to fix it. He looked over at the clock and clapped his hands. Lily jumped slightly at the sudden noise.

"Bella will be home soon. Do you want me to show you to your room?" Charlie stood as he asked.

"Yeah… sure," she mumbled back her answer.

She seemed a little jarred at the sudden change in conversation shortly after such an announcement, but she followed anyway. He wanted to hug her and tell her it would all be okay. Instead, he picked up her suitcases and headed for the staircase.

He bit the inside of his mouth as he opened the familiar bedroom door. The once-barren room that had been made up of mostly neutral colors now stood proudly in all its lilac glory. The room was gorgeous, and Charlie was glad he'd allowed Alice to come over and pick it all out. He had attempted a room makeover once when Bella had moved in. He was sure she had simply been too nice to admit how horrible it had all looked the way he had thrown it together.

He placed Lily's luggage just inside the door as she walked past him. Her expression still hadn't changed, and her arms were still firmly placed over her chest. He placed his nervous hands back in his pockets as he rocked back and forth on his heels slightly.

"It's pretty," she said, nodding her approval.

"Alice," Charlie swallowed, that being all he could manage to say.

Angry women had to be Charlie's one and only weakness. He never knew how to respond and could usually be found giving said woman whatever she wanted. Charlie had learned that being still and making little to no noise usually diffused the situation greatly.

"It's pretty," she repeated, unfolding her arms and giving him a weak smile.

He let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding in as he grinned back at her. "I'm glad you like it."

She pointed to the matching twin beds. "Which is mine?"

He pointed to the one next to the door, and she began dragging her luggage to it. He didn't know if that was cue to leave or not, so he stood awkwardly in the doorway.

"Bella usually makes dinner for me, but I'm sure we could go out and eat if you want."

She shook her head, though she never looked back up at him. "No. Dinner here is fine."

"Well… um… I'm going to go to my room. Make yourself at home." He rolled his eyes at the cliché comment.

When she didn't respond, he retreated back into the hallway, reaching to shut the door behind him. As soon as it closed, he heard her muffled screams. He reached reflexively for the handle again and stopped himself, giving a low chuckle; he'd heard that noise before, too. She was screaming into a pillow. In time, he would tell her just how much like her real mother she actually was. He shook his head and continued on to his own room, thinking one thought: Dinner should be interesting.

* * *

Charlie cringed again as Bella dropped yet another pan on the counter. He was desperately attempting to ignore the loud noises coming from the kitchen and watch his game. Television was his only distraction, and currently it was being interrupted by Bella's nervousness. Charlie caught another glimpse of Edward out of the corner of his eye. He was perched perfectly still on the other end of the couch. Every once in awhile, Charlie would catch him shifting his position, but his expression never changed.

Lily's footsteps could be heard overhead, shuffling back and forth through the small room. She was still getting situated and hadn't once ventured downstairs. Before Bella had gotten home, Charlie had heard Lily talking on the phone to someone. He couldn't make out any more than muffled whispers through the wall… not that he had been eavesdropping or anything.

He shook his head slightly and directed his attention back to his small television screen just as Edward stood, heading into the kitchen. If Charlie's ears heard right, Bella had just dropped the small sauce pan on the floor and was trying to clean up what had splattered. Bella was in rare form today; Charlie couldn't remember the last time he'd seen her so flustered. She had always been so put together, never letting anything get to her. Her maturity had always compensated for any nervousness, but her blush would always give her away to those who knew her well.

Charlie knew Bella's face was surely a bright red, as she was aware how much rode on her interaction with Lily. He now realized it wouldn't have been possible to place more pressure on Bella than he already had by forcing them to share a room without ever meeting. Charlie made yet another mental note to thank Bella for being so amazing through all of this.

His eyes were suddenly drawn to the ceiling as he heard Lily open the door to the room. Charlie's heart was now beating wildly out of control as her footsteps began their descent down the staircase. His hands were visibly shaking as he turned his head just in time to catch sight of Lily entering the kitchen.

Lily smiled weakly as Bella and Edward both turned to look up at her from the floor. Bella stood and straightened out her shirt as she extended her hand. Bella was indeed blushing furiously as Lily took her hand and shook it. Both girls mirrored each others movements as they placed their hands back at their sides.

"I made spaghetti." Bella stated, pointing toward the large pot on the counter.

Lily's eyes grew wide and a smile stretched on her face. "I love spaghetti. It is literally my favorite dish."

"Mine too."

Edward finished the chore at hand before standing up as well. He placed the sauce pan back on the counter and extended his hand to Lily.

"Lily, this is Edward." Bella interjected, motioning to Edward.

She cocked her head ever so slightly to the side as she took it, jerking it back in the next instant as if she had received a shock. Charlie had entered the kitchen in time to observe this exchange but didn't know what to make of it.

He leaned against the door frame. "Is… uh… dinner ready yet, Bells?"

Bella peeled her eyes from Lily's face and nodded to Charlie. She turned slowly and started to gather the plates she had set out on the counter. She handed each out; one to Lily, one to Charlie, and one for herself.

"He's not eating?" Lily said, pointing to Edward. Her question directed at Bella.

"No. My mother is making my favorite dish tonight. I was simply staying for Bella's sake, but I can leave if I am making the situation uncomfortable," Edward explained.

Both Charlie and Bella remained motionless as they watched the exchange between Lily and Edward take place. The tone in her voice made her appear very irritated with Edward for some reason unknown. Lily continued to look deep into Edward's eyes as if searching for something before simply shrugging.

"No more uncomfortable than it already is," Lily stated plainly, turning to the counter where the spaghetti noodles were stationed.

She scooped herself a large amount before scooting down the counter for the sauce. Charlie took her lead and began dishing himself some as well. Bella and Edward continued what appeared to be a private and silent conversation before she followed behind the other two. Edward sat down at the table just as Lily did and politely smiled at her. She returned the gesture, though it did not seem genuine. Charlie had never really entertained the idea of Edward and was greatly enjoying that there appeared to be someone else who did find him as fascinating as Bella and the rest of the town did.

Lily took her fork and began swirling it around her noodles. Some of the sauce dripped back onto her plate as she picked it up and started eating. She moaned quietly and appreciatively as she gave a thumbs up to Bella, who had finally taken her seat. Bella half-smiled as she began eating her own smaller portion.

Lily swallowed. "I can't believe I found someone else who puts jalapenos in their spaghetti sauce. This is great," she exclaimed.

"Oh. Yeah… my mom… Or our mom," Bella corrected quickly, "loves jalapenos in her sauce." She shrugged. "Honestly, I don't even think about it anymore when I make it. I've always done it like that."

Lily nodded and took another large bite. Charlie was glad Lily was talking to Bella civilly, though she had no reason to be mature about any of this. He knew he would never have taken the news he had been lied to as well as both of his daughters had.

"So, Bella," Lily said, mouth half-full, "when is our birthday?"

Charlie's eyes grew wide as he realized he had forgotten to tell Bella the latest news. "Lily just found out she is actually two years older than what her other parents were telling her," he blurted out.

"Yeah. Apparently there's a lot about myself I don't know." Lily swallowed, going back for what was sure to be another large bite. She seemed to be quite adjusted to the shocking news she had only discovered hours ago.

Both of Bella's eyebrows rose as she stared from Charlie to Lily again. "It's September 13th," she said quietly.

Lily just nodded as she took another bite and looked out the window. This time it was Edward who continued the conversation.

"So, Lily." He smiled politely at her as she turned back to him again. "What are some of your hobbies? What did you do for fun in North Beach?"

She didn't appear too thrilled that Edward had chosen to speak again, but she answered him anyway. "I was in beauty pageants mostly, though I don't think I'd call it fun," she said tersely.

"Oh? And why is that?" he asked, seemingly interested in their conversation.

She took another bite and swallowed before answering him. "Well, Edward." Her voice appeared strained. "It's hard to find much fun in standing around for hours in a big poofy dress and tons of make-up while you watch much younger girls do things too risqué for their age."

Charlie choked slightly on his dinner when he heard her explanation. It was obvious that she didn't enjoy talking about this, or anything else to do with North Beach. He turned to her and noticed she looked ready to cry as she placed her fork on her now-empty plate.

"May I be excused?" she questioned, turning up to Charlie with glistening eyes.

He nodded and watched as she scooted her chair back, took her plate to the sink, and then walked slowly upstairs. She hadn't slammed or even shut her door, so Charlie took that as a good sign. He turned to Edward and glared at him. Edward appeared visibly repentant for having inadvertently upset Lily. Regardless, Charlie felt no sympathy for him as he took his plate to the sink as well.

"Thanks for dinner, Bells," Charlie said. "It was good."

He walked back into the living room to continue watching his game. Charlie couldn't remember a moment when he had ever hated Edward more than he did right now. He could hear Bella's hushed tones coming from the kitchen, and he turned the game up louder. Charlie knew that conversation wasn't meant for him anyway.

He still managed to hear Lily lay down on her bed upstairs as it scooted across the floor slightly. How could he make this better for everyone? Charlie hoped he would find a way. He would call Renée next chance he got and fill her in on all the latest. Maybe she had been right. Maybe Lily did need her mother more than she needed her father. He couldn't stop the tears welling in his own eyes at the thought. He had looked so long for her. Charlie couldn't stand the thought that, after all that searching, praying, and worrying, she wouldn't _want_ to be here with him.

He cursed himself as a picture appeared vividly in his mind: a tiny plastic hospital bassinet standing empty. He had stared at it for so long that night, hoping it would have the answers to her location etched somewhere on it. He looked down at his feet as he realized he would do whatever was best for Lily, even if that meant sending her away again.

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	5. Freedom

Lily stood near the edge of her new bed, staring at the outfit she had picked out last night. In the light of the new day and against the pale pink comforter she was starting to hate it. Nothing about it seemed right.

She needed to get Bella's opinion. It was a strange sensation to suddenly crave the comfort of a person you had only met 16 hours ago. Something about Bella made her feel safe and comfortable, like this was where she had always belonged. Better yet, it was if she had always been here. Did Bella feel the same way?

_'How melodramatic of me'_, she thought.

The thought of being overly emotion reminded her of last night and her first meeting with Edward. She's not quite sure what had taken hold of her, but she knew that she wanted to be as far away from him as possible. After she had stomped up to her room, like your typical teenager, she had pulled out her phone as was becoming habit for her. As the backlight came on she did a small, silent prayer hoping that Jay would have left her a text message.

It amazed her, even now, as she thought of how quickly Jay had become such a fixture in her life too. He was her best friend and her guiding light of real in the sea of fake. Maybe this was a new habit of hers, becoming completely consumed by anyone new she met.

Regardless, Jay had been the one last night to remind her real father didn't seem keen on forcing her into anything she didn't want to do and that Lily should take full advantage of that. He had told her to find herself and that he was sure in the tiny town of Forks, Washington that would definitely be possible.

_Real father_, she thought, _how bizarre_.

Her phone vibrated near her pillow breaking her from her reverie and she lunged forward to grab it. Hopefully it was Jay again with his famous words of encouragement for her first day in her new school, her real school. She rolled her eyes instantly; Lauren had sent her wonderfully fake words about no longer being in North Beach.

_"Not gonna be the same without you girly. Hope to see you soon. xoxo Lauren"_

Lily did not feel obligated to reply. There was no one here to force upon her friends she did not care to be around. Bella opened the door cautiously and smiled down at her on the bed. It was a nice feeling that she wasn't the only one cautious about her every move. She bounced back on the bed and stood near her outfit. She cocked her head to the side again to try and make a decision regarding something most would see as simple, picking an outfit.

She watched as Bella walked slowly to the other side of the room to retrieve her brown and dark green backpack. She wanted to say something to her and she definitely had a million questions, but Lily just kept opening and shutting her mouth awkwardly instead. Her face suddenly became very hot and she was sure her face was a brilliant shade of scarlet. She turned away and stared back down again at her clothes. Bella was suddenly at her side, backpack over her shoulder, staring down at the ensemble too.

"It's actually going to be too cold for that outfit, I think…" Bella said, her voice trailing off.

Lily never looked up as she mentally went over her wardrobe to determine if she even owned anything suitable for this wet, cold place. She shrugged more to herself than Bella as she concluded she would need a makeover in the worst way. It was very possible she wouldn't hate this makeover like she had the last. She shivered though the temperature in the small house was comfortable, trying to physically shake those memories from her mind.

Lily was suddenly very aware of the light drizzle hitting the window beside her. No, Bella was right. This outfit would not fit in here as Lily was determined to do. She would be herself, but she would be comfortable. Jay had warned her of this area's climate, but Lily had ignored him. He had told her of the many summers he had spent here as a child on the nearby reservation. She silently scolded herself for not listening to him. He had been right about everything else, why not this?

She took a thin, long-sleeved shirt from the small closet and showed it to Bella for approval. She simply smiled and shook her head.

"That's perfect. Let me see if I can find you a jacket."

Bella simply needed to turn to her left to begin rifling through the small closet. She pulled out a dark green jacket that almost matched her backpack and handed it to Lily.

"I mean, if you want, you don't have to wear it," she said, shrugging her shoulders.

Lily took it, a huge smile on her face, collecting the other parts of her outfit and hurrying to the bathroom. She changed as quickly as possible and then turned to the tiny mirror. Everything seemed smaller here; smaller, but absolutely perfect. She stared back at her blank face, void of all makeup as it was every morning.

Jay had once caught her like this early one morning and told her that she looked more beautiful as is than any other time of the day. The blood rose to her cheeks and it turned that familiar bright color as she tried to think of something else. She was unsure why everything was reminding her of him, but she shook her head to take her back to the present. Today was not the day to be overtaken by the memories of her Jay.

She took a different routine this morning as she pulled out the hair dryer first. Her routine back in that large house many states away was a 3-step, complicated process and took place in a much larger area. A small smile formed on her lips as she realized in those moments, as she caked on makeup and applied fake eyelashes, she had daydreamed of being saved from the only life she knew, a life she hated. She craved a new life that involved only people that loved her for who she was without all the makeup and money. Lily took sharp, deep breaths as she realized that she had all of that now. Tears threatened to well up in her eyes. Her tears would be of the happy variety, but they were for another day.

Today would be different. She toyed with the large makeup kit stationed on the floor near her feet. She hadn't decided yet, but she knew that Bella wore very little makeup and she was absolutely gorgeous. Their skin wasn't the same shade, due to Lily's relentless tanning sessions, but it was flawless with no wrinkles regardless, just as Bella's skin was. She wasn't purposely trying to be "just like Bella," but if she was being honest with herself she did want proof she belonged in this too-good-to-be-true family.

She dried her hair quickly and decided to simply put on the lip gloss she loved, instead of the lip plumping stick that caused her mouth to sting uncomfortably. She walked silently back into the room and noticed Bella was staring out the window, smiling.

"What time does school start"? Lily asked, picking up her own bright green backpack.

Bella turned quickly, the smile still on her face.

"It starts in about 20 minutes. Edward is here to pick us up," Bella said, a sudden frown appearing.

It took Lily a second to comprehend what that frown meant. No, she did not like Edward, but she would try harder today; be better. She wanted desperately to not change Bella's whole life, more than it already had, so she forced a smile on her lips and nodded.

"That's so nice," she said through gritted teeth, "Will we have time to stop by the front office?"

Bella simply nodded and walked past Lily. She followed close on Bella's heels, shutting their bedroom door behind her. Bella bounded out the door seemingly unable to get to Edward fast enough. They quickly hugged before he ran to open the door. It took a second before Lily noticed that the door was open for her and she stumbled in the backseat, Bella climbing into the front passenger seat swiftly after her.

Lily scooted across the supple leather until she was sitting in the middle. She realized too late that it was in perfect eye line for Edward. However, she was determined to be nice to Edward and ignore her unjust instincts toward him. She plastered her familiar fake smile across her face as Edward adjusted his mirror, looking straight at her. She was good at nothing if not faking a smile.

"Should I move?" Lily asked, hoping her question appeared polite.

Edward simply shook his head and reversed from the driveway without looking back again. The car basically crawled toward Forks High School and Lily was instantly sure this was for Bella's sake as she saw her shoulders relax. Edward reached across the center console in the next second and took her hand. Bella never even looked from the window as they touched. Lily also noticed that she didn't cringe, which is what she was certain she would have done. She desperately needed to investigate the source of these feelings, maybe talk to Jay about all this, before she made any assumptions about Edward.

She shoved whatever monster this was down as far as possible as she rearranged her features, noticing suddenly that was on her face now was closer to a scowl than a smile. She followed Bella's lead and starred out the window to her left. The small town of Forks flashed before her eyes, but mostly she saw green. While she would miss the beach she definitely appreciated the wonderfully green and lush place she would call home soon enough.

_Home. Our room. Sister_.

All these words and more were playing on repeat in her head and a grin spread on her face. She liked the sound of all these words, especially since they finally applied to her in all the best ways. She just desperately hoped she would not screw this up.

They pulled into a spot near the front that seemed to almost be reserved for Edward. The parking lot was nearly full, but this spot was void. As Edward placed the car in park Lily unbuckled. She looked up in time to see four more unnaturally beautiful people that seemed to be waiting for Edward. If she'd been paying close attention she would have realized it was in that instant that the hair on the back of her neck stood straight.

Lily looked back to Edward and watched his interaction with them. They all had the same eerie, pale shade to their flawless skin. They also all shared a variation of the same golden eye color. She shook her head a couple of times and then got out the same door Bella had just exited. They _had_ to be his family.

Lily stood in between Bella and Edward unintentionally as she got out of the car. After straightening her shirt she looked up and saw all eyes on her. She was also suddenly very aware of the close proximity of everyone. Uneasy wasn't even a strong enough word to describe her feelings right now. She laughed awkwardly and slid between the two cars toward the small sidewalk.

"The office is this way," Lily stated more than questioned, motioning toward the same doors she had entered yesterday.

She didn't know whether she should wait for Bella and she turned on the group and walked slowly.

_"Why do you have to be such a freak?!" Lily silently scolded herself, "So much for not being rude."_

She would have to try to explain her situation to Bella. Just maybe Bella knew the feeling and help her get adjusted. Maybe it wasn't Edward at all; maybe it was just her new life and her newfound freedom to be herself. There had to be some underlying reason for all this hostility toward a person she had just met.

She heard Bella's footsteps slightly jogging toward her. She also heard a stumble in those steps and then Bella seemed to regain her composure in the next second. Lily did not need to turn around to know that Edward had been the one to stop Bella's trajectory toward the concrete. The suddenly strong smell wafting toward her also gave him away. Lily couldn't place the smell, but it was giving her a headache and quickly. Somehow she knew that sickly sweet, almost sugary smell, was associated with Edward. She was probably imagining that too.

_"Probably just my mind playing tricks on me so I don't have a __**complete**__ mental breakdown,"_ she thought to herself.

She pushed the doors open in front of her and continued to the right. She had guessed right as she saw the sign that stated "FRONT OFFICE" in big silver letters. She smiled, in spite of herself, for being able to remember so easily. Though how hard could it be with a school and a town this small. She avoided all the curious eyes as she entered the small, mildew-smelling room. Lily smiled big for the greying, middle-aged woman sitting behind the desk. This wasn't the same woman as yesterday, but she would just explain her situation and see what was needed next.

Bella and Edward held a hushed conversation behind her. Lily made no effort to decipher its meaning as she began to start the speech she had prepared for everyone.

"Hi. Lily Swan?" the woman asked, before Lily could even get a word out.

She simply nodded and took the schedule that was pushed across the counter to her. As she turned around Bella and Edward broke up their conversation and turned to Lily. Lily held up the piece of paper grinning.

"Well it's official. This is the weirdest day of my life," Lily remarked, laughing softly.

Bella's crooked smile reached her eyes as she read the schedule over Lily's shoulder, walking out of the office.

"Oh. That's nice. We have a lot of classes together," Bella stated, simply, "and you even have one with Alice."

Lily did not understand everyone's fascination with this Alice person, but she would find out soon enough. Regardless, if Bella and Charlie liked her Lily would like her too… she had to.

Lily followed behind Edward and Bella now as they lead the way. Lily pretended to be engrossed in her schedule as every eye in the long hallway followed her. She had half expected this due to the sheer size of the student body. It probably wasn't everyday someone like Lily walked through the doors. She pushed a curl that had fallen from her messy bun back behind her ear. She wondered if there was a bathroom on the way that she could stop at to fix her hair. Suddenly anxiety was her primary emotion as she looked around nervously.

_"Oh wait," she thought, "I don't have to fix my hair if I don't want to!" _

Lily smiled again and she was sure if someone was paying any sort of attention they would think she was crazy, periodically smiling to herself. This caused a small giggle and out of the corner of her eye she saw that Edward was almost mirroring her facial expressions as if he was in on her private conversation.

They all walked over the threshold of the small classroom and Bella walked up to the man behind the front desk Lily knew must be the teacher. Bella said a small 'hello' and motioned toward Lily. He nodded and gestured that Lily should follow Edward and Bella to her new seat. They merely walked to the back of the room, to the last table, and took their seats on the end. Lily sat on the other side of Bella and settled her backpack on the floor near her seat.

It seemed that everyone at this small school knew Lily and the situation. Maybe that little speech she had prepared to explain the situation wasn't necessary. It was already slightly jarring that no one seemed to watch her as she walked to her seat. Sure, they had watched in the hallway, but in the privacy of the classroom no one seemed to pay her any mind.

She turned to stare up at the front of the room as their teacher walked around his desk and leaned casually against it. He was obviously trying hard to appear as the "cool" teacher. Lily leaned forward and propped herself on her arm as she prepared for a lecture.

Just as she had predicted he began yammering on about Romeo and Juliet. English was her favorite class and also the easiest. She had always taken very advanced classes and they were on a stricter curriculum in Maryland so this would not be a new lesson for her. She proceeded to tune him out as she had already tested on the book. She had scored wonderful, as she always did and as was expected of her. At least the fear of punishment from a bad grade, or even bad day for that matter, was gone from her life.

She pulled out one of her empty notebooks to at least appear to be listening. Her mind began to wonder and she was suddenly daydreaming again. The exact color of Jay's skin came back full force. The way the light reflected off it and the slight musky tinge to his body hit her hard as she let her memories of this summer replay in her mind.

Everything about it had been remarkable and unbelievable with Jay in it. She hadn't quite placed her feelings, but she knew she had enjoyed any time she was able to spend with him. The fact that his family just _happened_ to be conducting their annual family reunion there was enough to make her celebrate, but they had also clicked in a way she never had with anyone before, which was spectacular and terrifying.

They had continued their relationship of sorts through frequent e-mails, text messages, and even the occasional Skype session. Once in a blue moon she had even gotten a quick by some of his friends, though now she couldn't remember their names.

Edward made a strange noise beside Bella, half choke and half laugh. Lily was too nervous to turn to inspect. The noise had interrupted her daydream and she suddenly looked around to the others to see if she had somehow revealed where she really was, instead of in a classroom full of people. No one seemed to even be aware that they were back here. It was if Lily, Edward, and Bella were on the outside looking in. It was a wonderful feeling to know that there was no one to watch your every move as closely as they had in that hell hole.

Lily looked to her right to determine what was causing Edward to make that noise. He stared ahead as did Bella, as if nothing had happened in the first place. Maybe she had imagined that too and she launched herself back into her daydream. His booming laugh resounded from her memories and she was transported again to the warm sand.

Before Lily had noticed everyone was up and getting their things together for the next class. She assumed the bell had rung to signal the end of class, though she hadn't heard it. She reached down for her backpack and looked over to Bella, who was staring down at her quizzically, Edward behind Bella watching cautiously.

She stood up and waited for them to lead the way once again. She forced another smile as Edward looked into her eyes. He smiled back, but it was with a look of worry. She was unsure what could cause that for him other than the fact that she probably looked crazy half a second ago. She got up in the next instant and followed obediently, asking no questions. She was deep in thought as she walked contemplated what it meant that she was imagining so much later. Also, her daydreams seemed to be more frequent in this place. Thought she would probably get a text or two throughout the day she knew she'd talked to him, but she was unsure of when she would see Jay again. Her daydreams were what probably helped her cope so much with all the change.

_"Change and lies,"_ she thought.

She followed silently behind the pair again and took in her surroundings and she looked over all the handmade posters revealing the school's recent happenings. She ran into Edward's back as she hadn't noticed they had stopped. Lily was suddenly very aware of how strong Edward was or unmoving rather. It was if he was a statue, made of stone, and it was a bizarre feeling. She backed away instantly and looked over at Bella, feeling as if she had run headfirst into a brick wall. Bella gestured for Lily to enter the classroom.

"You're not in this class?" Lily said, sounding defeating. She noticed that Bella made no move to enter as well.

The idea of separating from Bella, even with Edward, was slight torture. All of the other kids had been too nervous to talk to her with Bella there and she was sure as soon as they weren't together they would launch the thousand question assault. Lily didn't know if she was quite ready for all of the attention again. She signed heavily and walked past Bella, giving her a pained smile.

"We're in the class after this," Bella reassured Lily, "And Alice is in this one too."

As if out of thin air there was a tiny, dark-haired pixie at her left. Without any introduction Lily knew this must be Alice. Lily smiled in spite of herself as she looked over at the girl with the wide grin. Alice motioned to the back of the room where two desks sat near the wall. Maybe it was genetic that they wanted to sit as far away from the rest of the class as possible. It was if they were scared of the other kids. Lily obliged and placed her backpack across the back of her chair she assumed was hers turning in time to see the small, plump teacher take a seat behind her desk.

The bell rang and the last few stragglers entered the classroom, some at a slight jog, attempting to appear that they had been in a hurry to get there. Alice began to speak and it all came out in almost a sing-song voice. It was very jarring to hear and it made everyone else's voice sound like sandpaper compared to this beautiful chiming speech. Lily, not wanting to appear rude, turned to face her, but not without a quick glance toward the teacher to see if she planned on starting any time soon. She didn't even look up from whatever she was engrossed in so Lily assumed it was safe enough.

She did not want to appear the troublemaker her first day here either. From what she had gathered of Bella she never caused any trouble and Lily didn't want be the first to rock the boat. That's all Charlie needed right now; to be told that the daughter he had just reunited with was getting punished at school.

She turned to see Alice smiling still and Lily returned the sentiment. She realized that the smiles with Alice, at least, are not forced or fake and for that she is grateful. Alice's demeanor and sense of ease remind Lily greatly of how she felt around Bella and Charlie. She silently makes a note that Edward can't be all that bad if this is his sister.

"So, are you settling in okay?" Alice questioned, though it was a polite inquiry. Lily knew it was sincere as she looked back into Alice's gorgeous goldenrod eyes.

Lily simply nodded. She didn't know if it was safe to get into a complete conversation. Alice seemed to know precisely how long to talk as she continued to ask other slightly probing questions.

"Is it strange being away from all your friends? How it is going with Charlie? Have you talked to Renee yet?" Alice blurted out all at once "Oh and feel free to not answer anything. I just know that I would be bursting at the seams to talk about all the new experiences… "

"…if it were me," she added quickly.

Lily smiled back at her and realized that she had someone just for that, but she didn't mind telling Alice any of it. She looked around to see if others were listening. She didn't feel like her every word becoming gossip. When she glanced she noticed everyone seemed to be in their own conversation so she turned back to Alice.

"Bella and Charlie are great. Honestly, I'm a little nervous this is all a dream," Lily scooted back quickly, not sure what made her say that.

She almost wanted to slap her hands over her mouth to keep the word vomit from coming out. Alice reached over to touch her arm, in an attempt to be comforting she was sure, but even with the thick jacket on Lily could feel an icy sting from Alice.

It was just as last night was with Edward. The instant he had taken her hand she had felt an icy bite. She knew of no other way to describe it and now it seemed a dull pain with Alice. She thought in one instant to move her hand, but decided against it. She desperately did not want to offend Alice. She had already said too much.

"I know what you mean," Alice began, "When I was adopted by Carlisle and Esme it seemed like a fairy tale. I just kept thinking they would realize I didn't belong here. That I wasn't good enough."

Lily was suddenly shocked when she realized she knew nothing of their lives. She had been in too big of a hurry to hate Edward that even after Bella had finally come to their room last night she hadn't asked a single question. Now that last night was replaying in her mind she realized she hadn't said anything to Bella at all. She reminded herself, once again, to apologize to Bella for last night.

"I didn't know you were adopted," Lily stated truthfully, "That is basically what I feel like; Almost like I don't belong. I mean, I know I do when I see some little similarities between me and Bella, but I feel like I've stepped in the middle of the story instead of the beginning like you're supposed to.

"If that makes any sense…" Lily said, trailing off. Her cheeks becoming red hot with the blush she knew must be there.

She looked away from Alice, hoping the teacher would save her and begin whatever lecture or lesson she had planned today, but there was no such luck. Their teacher remained head down and only seemed to even look up when it got a touch too loud. Lily had no choice but to turn back to Alice. She decided instead to simply turn Alice's direction and look down at her desk, seemingly enthralled by what was scrawled there.

"It makes perfect sense," Alice whispered and winked as Lily looked up.

Alice then turned to face the front of the room. Lily hadn't even heard their teacher more, but there she was in front of her desk. Lily turned to grab her notebook from her backpack behind her again. She might love English and do very well, but that wasn't the case with every subject. She turned back to their teacher and focused her attention on the board ahead. She would make the most of her time here. Now that she knew how close she was to already losing Bella to college she needed every moment she got with Bella was precious. She needed to find out the missing pieces to her life.

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	6. Zealous

Bella smiled over at Lily as she caught her eye. It seemed ages ago that Lily had come to join this small family. It had never occurred to Bella that this small family wasn't complete. She couldn't be happier to finally know the tiny, peppy blonde she now called her sister. That wasn't to say that it was perfect all the time, but it was certainly better than anyone had imagined.

Today would be the day that it all came full circle too. Today was the first day she would see Jacob since she found out. The day that Edward had told her seemed still so vivid in her mind as she had replayed it over and over afterwards.

Keeping that small, but huge secret from Lily was more daunting than she'd realized when she'd agreed. They had both decided that making sure that Lily stayed in the dark about this was imperative. Edward had reminded her, more than once, that this simply wasn't their secret to tell. Hopefully, after their meeting today Jacob would come clean on his own.

She moved back to the kitchen and left Lily and Charlie to the game they were watching together to begin dinner. While Bella wouldn't be there this evening she wanted to make sure Charlie didn't drag Lily to the diner for the hundredth time. Lily had insisted that she could make dinner just fine, but Bella enjoyed it. She knew it was her thing to make dinner and Lily's to watch the games with Charlie. At first, Bella had assumed Lily was simply doing it to appease Charlie, but it truly appeared that Lily enjoyed all sports as Charlie did. It was a thing of beauty to view the two of them in their element, discussing different aspects of whatever sport they were watching.

They both grumbled at whatever had just happened on the large television screen and Bella's face broke in a small smile. How had they survived without Lily before? It all seemed so far away. While everyone seemed to be getting along just fine Lily was far from opening up to anyone. Bella just hoped that it didn't lead to a complete implosion on Lily's part. No one could keep that quiet for too long; not without consequences.

The microwave dinged and broke Bella from her trance. At once, a knock came on the front door and as neither of them moved, Bella walked silently to the door. Bella knew who it must be and when she saw his face her own lit up. She reached over the threshold and pulled him in by the neck, hugging him close.

It was nice to know that every bit of tension that existed between Edward and Jacob at one time was absolutely gone. He had been the one to suggest the rendezvous as a reconciliation of sorts for their friendship. It was certainly nice to know the final, true nature of their relationship and know that Jacob saw it the same way. For once, where Jacob was concerned, everything seemed in its place. The real reason for the ungodly pull they both felt was revealed as were the mystical reasons behind it.

Lily coughed lightly beside them to interrupt their meeting. Bella looked up in time to see her motioning with her head towards Charlie. It was their signal that he was coming and that Bella might want to tone down the obvious displays of affection for Edward around Charlie just a bit.

Lily giggled quietly as she always did, shaking her head slowly at the pair. Edward &amp; Bella's blatant feelings for one another seemed to always surprise and amuse Lily. The familiar heat rose to her cheeks as she removed her arms from his cold body and walked slowly into the kitchen to regain her composure.

He followed quietly behind her, holding one hand, as it she appeared to be leading him to his normal spot. She pulled the spaghetti sauce out of the microwave and smiled politely over at Lily who was pulling down two ancient, floral-patterned plates. Lily returned the smile and then ducked to the table, across from Edward, but never looking directly at him.

Their relationship was strained to say the least. Bella knew getting Lily to admit her feelings about Edward would be the hardest thing to get to behind the wall she had built. Bella was grateful that whatever her feelings she was making a real effort. She placed the two bowls on the table and turned to alert Charlie, but he was already headed her direction.

Edward moved from his position and stood next to Bella at a slightly alarming speed. No one seemed to notice as the pair began to dish out their large helpings. Bella couldn't help a chuckle that escaped as the petite Lily took a third scoop of noodles and placed it on her plate. Lily's cheeks turned red as she shook her head and smiled at Bella.

"Well…" Bella began, "I'm going to go up and see Jake…"

She rocked back and forth on her heels, nervousness setting in, as she realized that she would soon be seeing her best friend to discuss uncomfortable issues. She secretly hoped that Charlie would oppose or even want her to relay her day to prolong her departure. No such luck occurred for Bella as Charlie simply nodded and then returned his attention to the large pile in front of him.

Bella rolled her eyes as she huffed to herself and walked out the front door. She knew Edward was close behind as she could feel the chill in the air around him. She never turned to see his reaction as she went to open her door. As was custom he was there before she had a chance to reach the door handle and today she didn't object. She wasn't about to push Edward to the point of not letting her go. While she dreaded this conversation she knew it had to be made.

They rode to the imaginary boundary line before Forks and La Push in silence as Bella never removed her eyes from the road. She had taken to counting the trees as they sped past. Truthfully, she was getting slightly nauseous and for once she was not perturbed or embarrassed. She gracefully welcomed it as it distracted her ever so slightly from the thickening forest.

As they turned the corner Bella looked up and saw a very relaxed Jacob sitting on the edge of his small white Rabbit. At least one of them didn't appear to fear the upcoming moments as they broached unfamiliar territory. Edward crawled to a stop for what Bella was certain had to do with the fact he wished to extend their time together. His black eyes told another story and she was fortunate that all of this was occurring when it did, he needed desperately to hunt.

He reached over to hug her awkwardly across the center console and buried his head into her hair. She was fairly certain that he had sniffed it, but she couldn't be too sure with Edward as he made it clear how much distance was needed between the two of them. She returned the hug and then made a small move to open the door. He loosened his hold on her and finally allowed her to escape his grasp and head out into the crisp air.

She could feel his eyes on her as she walked to close the distance between her and Jacob. She wanted to turn to see Edward's face, but knew that it would destroy her resolve. Bella was not one for confrontation, but today would be different. She knew that Lily needed this to happen and that thought alone made her stronger. Though Lily needed it she didn't quite know it yet and this was beginning to become more complicated as the days dragged on.

Jacob walked slowly to meet her with his hands in his pockets staring down at the asphalt as he walked. A small grin broke on Bella's face as she realized that Jacob was simply better at hiding his nervousness initially, not that he wasn't nervous at all.

He finally gazed up as they had almost reached each other, but looked instead over her head completely and directly at Edward. Bella turned quickly to see his reaction and was met with a simple nod in their direction. Jacob reached out and took her hand, leading her to the car, without ever looking directly at her. The suspense was killing her, but not enough to make her initiate this conversation.

They entered the car silently and Bella unintentionally mimicked every moment of his, buckling up slowly in another effort to avoid the tension. Jacob cleared his throat and Bella's heart rate picked up immediately as it seemed the unavoidable awkwardness was finally greeting them.

"Bella," Jacob began, his voice more hoarse than she predicted, "I'm not sure what Edward told you, but I promise it's not as weird as it sounds."

Bella's eyebrows raised in response to his comment as the words Edward had said replayed in her mind. The most surprising to Bella was how gracious Edward had appeared when explaining Jacob's sudden plight. Once the realization hit she knew the reason behind the sudden change in his behavior, he felt almost sorry for Jacob because he understood.

A light rain began to beat on the car roof as they sped along toward La Push and its inhabitants. When Jacob didn't continue Bella turned to look at him and was startled to see a look of pain there. This was bothering him more than even Edward had let on and she reached across to close their distance, placing her hand on his arm.

"Jake."

"Bella," a smile on his lips, her touch seemingly reassuring, "I know she is your sister. A sister you never even knew you had and the whole thing is just ridiculous."

All his words were now rushing together in his nervousness and she ached to reaffirm that this was in no way ridiculous.

"Jacob," she interrupted his speech, "This is not silly, okay. This is… special. She is my sister, but she is your…"

The word seemed stuck in her throat and even after rehearsing some version of the current conversation she didn't know if she was prepared to say what was needed.

"Imprint," he finished for her.

Bella nodded her head and a grin spread that was surprisingly not forced.

"Yes, your imprint, Jake. That's special and I really, really wish you would just let her know everything so I didn't have to keep this secret from her."

Her tone was more accusatory than she meant for it to be, but she believed sincerely in what she was saying. He didn't need to tell her all the mythical creatures that Forks and La Push held, but he could at least come clean on the fact that he was a mere twenty minutes from she now sat on the couch with Charlie.

He was already shaking his head vehemently at this suggestion and she could tell he had rehearsed this encounter also.

"Bells, you know I literally can't do that."

"I know you can't tell her _that_ Jake, but I just meant you could tell her she was just a short drive away from you."

"Bella I…"

He pulled into his dirt driveway before putting the car into park in front of the small, rust-colored house. He looked down at his hands almost seemingly embarrassed of what he was going to say next though Bella was sure it would not shock her at all.

"…I just lied to her so much Bells. I don't think you come back from that. I know I'm a coward, okay, but I'm enjoying the time I'm having with her right now. Even if it's just through the phone and stuff."

He never looked up to gauge her reaction as he spoke and she wished he had. He would have noticed that at no time did her expression change because she had expected everything he had just confessed.

"Jake. I know all the lies you told."

His face shot up to hers at the revelation and the embarrassment was now clearly etched on his face. He then returned his gaze to his hands and she knew exactly what she would say to him next before any of the conversation had even begun.

"I just have a hard time believing it's a bigger deal than Sam being in love with Emily while he was dating Leah."

His mouth twitched slightly as if he was trying not to find her comment funny though it wasn't meant to be.

"I think it might be a little more complicated than that."

Bella laughed out loud before she could catch herself and then was finding it extremely difficult to stop. Before she knew what had happened they were both in hysterics, laughing together at some unknown joke.

As it quieted down Jacob simply rolled his eyes and got out of the car, heading for his house. Bella got out and followed more slowly behind. They both walked into the small entryway and shook off the raindrops that had gathered in their hair and on their clothes. The tension seemed to have disappeared as they walked from the rabbit and they walked into the living room and took what used to be their normal positions in front of the television.

Jacob flipped to one of the local news station channels and turned the volume down to make it simply background noise. It appeared he had more to say, but it would not be in the same anxious mood from before. She smiled up at him and took in the sheer size of Jacob as he towered over her, even as they sat cross-legged on the couch facing each other now.

"Jake, listen, I know this all seems complicated now, but I still think you should tell Lily about _most _of this."

He sat silently listening to her and offered no indication he had even heard her so she continued. She knew she would probably have one uninterrupted chance at this.

"Lily is very understanding and nice and funny and I just hate to see her hurting."

Jacob's face dropped at this news as if he is genuinely taken by surprise at it. Bella was momentarily blindsided by the amount of emotion swimming in his eyes at this revelation. She silently berated herself as she thought of how good Lily was at hiding her feelings, especially if the other party couldn't see her face. This was new information for Jacob and as Bella was now realizing, it was hurting him because it was hurting her.

"She's hurting…"

He said it as more of a statement than a question, but it was still full of regret for having unintentionally caused Lily any harm. Bella backtracked so that she could set them back on their original path. The one they were on before Jacob had suddenly become overcome by his shame.

"Jake. Listen. I'm sorry for saying it like that. It's just that I can tell it hurts her feelings when you kind of skirt around the idea of meeting up with her again."

He was now looking down at his hands as he absentmindedly played with the strings on the bottom of his shorts.

"She just really likes you Jake. I mean, you should see her face when she talks about hanging out with you before. Her whole face lights up."

Bella smiled involuntarily as she thought of the excitement in Lily's voice when she told stories of her 'Jay'. She felt as if this was the only time Lily every truly let her guard down and it was only when she was alone with Bella in their room. Those small talks, even when they weren't about anything in particular, were starting to become some of Bella's favorite moments. It was simply nice to have someone to have silly conversations about nothing with.

"She doesn't even know my real name, Bells."

"I know, but honestly Jake I think she'd take it a lot better than you think."

He scoffed at my comment, "Not everyone is so accepting of weird things as you."

It was Bella's turn to roll her eyes at his comment. The fact that Lily was even in Forks showed that she could handle more than Jacob wanted to believe.

"Jake, not even a month Lily was on the other side of the country living her life as an only child. I think she'd handle it just fine."

Jacob waved his hand as if that was the end of the conversation and she noticed the pain in his eyes as he dismissed it. He turned to face the television fully and reached for the remote to turn the volume to a more manageable level. Bella sighed loudly in protest before turning her attention to the same as Jacob flipped quickly through the channels.

The rest of the day went remarkably well compared to the beginning as they fell back into their normal routine. They spent a large part of the afternoon in the same garage they'd forged their friendship. Bella had also noticed that Jacob seemed extremely content with the fact that they were friends and nothing more, never changing the subject of their conversations to anything Edward would consider out-of-line. Their conversation flowed seamlessly from one to the other as they discussed everything from the pack, to Bella's school.

Before Bella even had time to register the darkness of the sky she was being driven back to the treaty line by Jacob. Their conversation ended more carefree than it had begun as they slowed around the final corner. Bella reached over to hug Jacob and make her way back to Edward, who she hadn't realized how much she'd missed until this moment. She wanted to hurry without hurting Jacob's feelings, but was surprised when he was matching her step for step toward Edward and his car.

Bella looked over at out of the corner of her eye to gauge his emotions as they neared Edward. Jacob didn't seem unhappy as they finally reached him, but maybe even a little ashamed. He never looked up as Bella went to stand next to Edward.

"Bella," Edward began, "would you please leave me to talk to Jacob alone?"

Edward motioned to the passenger side of the car, but Bella made no movement towards the vehicle.

Jacob sighed loudly before speaking, "It's fine, Bells. Promise."

Bella watched them both closely before heading to her designated seat. Edward was there to open the door for her before she had made it there. He smiled down at her as she entered and he shut the door behind her slowly. Bella made sure that Edward was back in front of the car before she rolled down her window slightly, hoping neither of them noticed. Her body was tense in the event that this was a more sinister conversation than either of the boys was letting on.

"I know what you're going to say," Jacob spat out.

Bella couldn't see Edward's face, as his back was to her, but she could hear the smile in his voice as he spoke next.

"Actually, Jacob, I believe it would be me that knows what you will say."

Jacob chuckled without humor and shook his head, still not removing his gaze from the ground. Edward waited patiently, but when Jacob chose not to continue Edward did.

"Jacob, I think you have seen the consequences of making up someone else's mind for them."

He shot his gaze directly into Edward's with a look of surprise and hurt. Edward made only a small move, which effectively blocked Bella's view. She huffed and scooted the other direction determined to be part of this.

"This is not the same thing."

"Isn't it?"

"I mean, if I knew what she was thinking that would be one thing…"

"I will not invade her privacy for you Jacob. You know she cares for you deeply. Stop making excuses."

Bella was shocked by how forceful Edward was being toward Jacob. It took her a moment to understand his distress in the recent events and Jacob's decisions, but then it came to her. Edward was reminded of what happened when he made the mistake of effectively ending their relationship. A small tear formed in her eye and she wiped it away the moment it threatened to spill down her cheek. The wounds were still fresh and now Bella realized it was that way for Edward also.

"Please, Jacob, just consider the possibility that what you've built up in your head is the furthest thing from the truth."

Jacob pondered Edward's comment before finally shaking his head and extending his hand. Bella was completely taken aback by the demonstration of camaraderie Jacob was displaying. Edward shook Jacob's hand before turning to return to the vehicle. Jacob stood their silently before returning to his own vehicle and driving back toward La Push.

Bella decided that she would wait a few minutes after they had been driving before she would demand answer to her questions from Edward. When he seemed to be purposely ignoring her staring a hole into the side of his head she finally conceded.

"I think I know what that was about, but it would be nice if you told me what was going on too. I don't like being left out."

He turned to see her face and smiled at what was Bella's best attempt at pouting. He seemed to contemplate the best way to phrase things before beginning.

"Jacob is simply making a horrific mistake that I wish he wouldn't."

"And that mistake would be?"

"He has no intention of seeing Lily."

Bella moved until her back hit the subtle leather seats forcing her to stare out the front windshield. Jacob would really choose to be away from Lily? Bella was suddenly realizing she knew nothing of the imprint situation and resolved to ask Edward about it fully the next time they had an extended moment together. She was not one for forcing Jacob to do anything, but when it seemed to be progressively hurting Lily's feelings she would do what was necessary. Jacob would see that in this situation Bella knew what was best and how this ended if he didn't get over his pigheadedness.

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	7. Away

Lily chatted happily with Alice as they continued down the hallway, bouncing slightly as they walked. Alice listened without compliant as she rambled on about Jay and all their recent texts and flirty words. Jasper's ever looming presence didn't even startle Lily anymore as they hurried to class. Lily couldn't stop the smile as she thought of Jay and said his name. It was very refreshing to have a girlfriend to dish about boys with. She knew whatever advice Alice offered would be sincere and just.

"So, what do you think?" she asked, turning to face Alice, to gauge her reactions.

She was met with Alice's beautiful, blinding smile. Of course, the smile reached her eyes and comforted Lily. She reached out and touched Lily's hair running a small piece through her fingers. Alice seemed to be contemplating something deep as she began to open her mouth to talk and shutting it again.

"What?" Lily asked, somewhat nervously.

"Is this your natural hair color?"

Lily snorted. "No! I look like a skunk!"

She continued to laugh as Alice removed her hands from her hair.

"I meant the blonde," Alice said, as she turned suddenly to continue their walk to class.

"Oh," Lily started, looking to Alice to confirm she hadn't somehow hurt her feelings, "No. My hair is actually red."

Alice continued to stare dreamingly ahead as they turned the corner and headed into class, but she did appear to have heard her. Lily desperately wanted to know why Alice was now talking about her hair, but their teacher started to settle down the class immediately as they crossed the threshold.

Lily tried to catch Alice's eye to let her know this strange detour in conversation wasn't over, but Alice never looked her direction again. Lily huffed quietly and then turned toward the teacher at the front of the class. She had all but tuned her out until now so she fished a pencil out of her bag to jot down what little notes were on the board to have Bella or Alice help her with it later. She was much too interested in her daydreams to be productive.

If she was being honest with herself these daydreams weren't always off the positive kind lately. She had started to imagine Jay meeting her for the first time in Forks with his girlfriend or something crazy. She just couldn't understand the reasons behind him suddenly being distant and short with her and then flirty the next. It had to be because he was with someone else. He wouldn't just suddenly shut her out for no reason.

The class period continued like this, Lily lost in her own thoughts. The bell rang and Alice and Lily stood up to collect their things. Alice continued to be obviously avoiding Lily's gaze as they walked through the hallway once more to head for the cafeteria. Lily finally gave up and walked directly in front of Alice, cutting off her.

"Yes?" Alice said, smirking, apparently amused.

"Why were you talking about my hair?"

Alice laughed in a noise that matched her sing-song voice. She simply shook her head and walked around Lily into the cafeteria, swinging the large doors open wide to enter.

"It really bothers you when you think you don't know something, doesn't it?"

"Oh. Well, yeah," Lily said, taken aback by her assessment of her, "So that wasn't anything then?"

"No. I was just curious. I can be pretty random sometimes," Alice said, shrugging her shoulders.

The three of them took their respective seats at the now crowded lunch table as everyone else piled in. Lily stood up and headed straight for the food, suddenly realizing just how hungry she was. She had completely forgotten breakfast again and was more than willing to eat the rectangle pizza offered today. She began piling her food when Bella joined her. She smiled up to Bella and continued to load up as they scooted down the line.

"So, how's your day? You were up pretty late last night. You must be exhausted."

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to keep you up."

"No! That's fine!" Bella backtracked, "I was just worried about you. Everything okay?"

As always Lily was delighted and amused by Bella's concern for her, but once Lily finally allowed herself to feel completely she knew she felt the same for Bella.

"Yeah.. I mean.. No.." Lily trailed off, as they headed back for the table.

The conversation was forgotten about as the large group fought with one another to be the loudest and recant their day so far. Lily took large bites and enjoyed listening to everyone else and their stories. She very much enjoyed how comfortable she now was with everyone and how easy everything had become. She wasn't going to let Jay and his new secret girlfriend put a damper on this new life. Besides, she had plenty of other things to worry about, like her abductor, wannabe parents.

They had tried, to no avail, to contact Lily and on more than one occasion Lily threatened to tell her Dad about the harassment. She knew she probably never would say anything, but she needed to keep them on their toes. She needed to know as much about her real past and abduction before she could really, truly move on, which she was hell bent on doing.

The lunch bell rang as everyone scooted the tiny plastic chairs across the tiled floor causing a screeching noise. The conversations continued into the hall as everyone threw away their trash and headed for their lockers to prepare for the next half of the day. Lily placed a smile on her face as Bella walked up beside her for their next class, which was surprisingly absent Edward today. Lily said nothing of the fact as they walked through the school.

"Buenos Dias," Mr. Beck said as they entered the class.

Lily and Bella simply nodded and headed for their seats. They took out their thin Spanish workbook and matching textbooks, waiting for the rest of the class to enter.

"So," Lily started suddenly, turning to Bella, "Alice asked me the strangest question before lunch."

Bella was now facing her, but didn't seem shocked that Alice would ask anything strange. Lily continued, "She asked if this was my natural hair color."

Bella smirked, "As if that's not obvious," and a small laugh played on her lips.

"I know right."

"If I know anything about Alice she's probably planning the makeover I never allowed," Bella stated.

"Oh… Well that might be fun," Lily smiled, happy for any makeover that didn't consist of pageant moms.

Bella laughed quietly and she seemed to be thinking of the fun Alice would have. Suddenly, Lily was too and she thought she might just mention this to Alice even if she wasn't thinking of it. It could be fun and she would love to see what her natural hair color looked like framing her face instead of the almost fluorescent color that did now.

Alice, Lily, and Jasper pulled into the short driveway before Bella and Edward made it home, but what most surprised her was that Charlie's cruiser wasn't parked in the driveway. He had made a habit of being there every time the girls returned home. Lily wasn't sure whether this upset her, but it had been nice knowing that someone was so happy to see you every day and was so desperately concerned about her whereabouts.

It hadn't been that long that she had abruptly come to the small town of Forks with almost no information about the people who were her family. For all she knew she could have come to live with serial killers in this tiny town with no way out. She was desperate to leave though and she would have happily taken the serial killers most days compared to the psychopathic, bipolar "mother" she grew up with.

Lily and Charlie rarely talked about anything of substance, mainly about whatever random sport was on the TV in front of them. However, on the rare occasion that Charlie opened up Lily got a decent glimpse in to the life she should have had. She loved getting him to divulge any information she could get her hands on, but hated when he asked any questions of her life. It never occurred to her that his pain might match hers in the lives they had lead apart.

With that thought Edward's car crept into the driveway behind Alice's car as she and Alice headed for the door. Alice and Lily wasted no time as they headed for the living room to study for their English exam. Lily was already pulling the full contents of her backpack out when Bella finally made it inside. Jasper had been hanging back and now it seemed on purpose as Edward and he entered at the same time, obviously deep in conversation.

Alice had taken to becoming Lily's study buddy and she was in no state to protest. She hated studying, but she adored Alice and loved their mini gossip sessions in between topics. Alice only shared one class with Lily, but that didn't stop them from quizzing one another the night before any test.

Jasper took his place beside Alice and Edward stood awkwardly in the doorframe making a comment about how he didn't feel comfortable being inside the house without Charlie, before Bella dragged him upstairs. Lily rolled her eyes at the two before extracting two highlighters from her bag. Alice was already pouring over her book in front of her when her head suddenly shot up and she began talking.

"What do you think about heading to Seattle this weekend?"

There was a loud creak from the floorboards above their heads suddenly protesting. They both looked overhead before they returned to the current conversation. Jasper seemed uncomfortable with the change in conversation as he shifted next to Alice, seemingly nervous.

"That would be fun! I would love that! I've never been," Lily admitted.

"We can go to my stylist there and we can do, like, a mini-makeover."

Lily burst out laughing when Alice's true intentions came pouring out. Alice's eyebrow was cocked when Lily finally looked back to her.

"Bella said you were trying to get her to do something like that," Lily said, the last laughs escaping her mouth before settling down, "I'm just shocked Bella wouldn't be into such a thing," she said in mock horror.

They both giggled before turning back to their work and the smile stayed on Lily's lips as she imagined Bella's shock as she had to change into a million outfits for Alice. She pictured Seattle in her mind as they finished their homework and began to try and stump one another with different questions.

The sun was beginning to set as Edward began to make his way back downstairs with Bella in tow. Not that long after that the sounds of Charlie pulling into the crowded driveway were heard. The five of them headed into the kitchen as Bella began their nightly routine of making dinner with an audience. They were all laughing as Charlie entered the house and shook off the raindrops on his coat. He hung it up as he joined them, sitting at the table, beginning to read the newspaper he had brought with him along with what looked like a case file. They tiny kitchen looked even smaller as everyone was standing in it. He didn't engage anyone in conversation so they all continued theirs.

"So Lily and I were thinking of heading up to Seattle this weekend, maybe Friday night after school, to have a girl's weekend…" Alice said, suddenly changing the subject as she had earlier that day.

"NO!" Charlie and Edward almost shouted in unison.

They turned to stare at one other before Charlie turned to Alice, "I'm sorry sweetheart. It's just so crazy up there right now. I don't know how I feel about that."

Charlie finally threw the newspaper down for everyone to see and it held the latest speculations of a killer lose in Seattle.

Lily rolled her eyes before looking to her Dad, "You can come with us if you want, but I really, really want to go. I don't have anything to wear."

When he didn't seem convinced she placed her hands together underneath her chin in a pleading motion before attempting to seal the deal with her best puppy dog eyes.

Charlie continued to stare straight into her eyes before finally sighing .

"I will think about it," he said quietly, "but what about someplace else like Port Angeles. I can't stand the idea of something happening to you."

Lily rolled her eyes without really meaning too, "Dad there is nowhere to shop there."

Charlie repeated that he would think about it and she turned to Bella to ask if she wanted to go as well. Edward seemed to have a firm grip on Bella's waist as she rolled her eyes too. She stated something about wanting to put bamboo chutes underneath her fingernails before going on a girl's weekend and Lily and Alice took that as a no. Lily hoped that it wasn't because of Edward and what looked like a very unhealthy relationship as his grip tightened. She knew she couldn't voice these opinions so she instantly worked at getting them out of her head. Alice and Lily continued to giggle and they immediately started planning their trip as they headed upstairs to Lily's laptop.

They girls were beyond giddy as Alice, Edward, and Jasper left that night after dinner, going on and on about all the places they would go first. Charlie hadn't conceded yet, but Alice was supremely confident in his answer. Bella seemed to enjoy their planning too and was even happier that she didn't have to participate. Charlie seemed to want hear none of it as he began to interrupt with nonsense about Charlie Manson and statistics about murders in large cities every time they talked about it around him. Lily laughed and waved to Alice as they left before shutting the door and turning back to Charlie.

"Dad, I promise I will be careful. I will take someone with us. I will stay in well-lit areas with a bunch of people."

She turned to see his face and noticed that she seemed to be chipping away at his insecurities, though she knew why they were there in the first place. She stood on her tip toes to place a small kiss on his cheek before bounding up the stairs. Lily knew she would need to keep chipping away before he would really let her leave, but she would do what she needed to get out of tiny town of Forks, Washington for just one weekend.

Friday morning was there before Lily realized and she slid her now packed bag under her bed. She was so excited to be getting away for a little while and the fact that she was going to be shopping didn't hurt. She didn't know when would be a good time to complain to Bella that she wasn't super comfortable with Alice paying for everything, but she was excited nonetheless.

Charlie had finally said yes, but they were required to take Carlisle and Esme with them on their trip. Alice and Lily had been more than happy to agree as this meant they could take Jasper too without it being too weird. The idea that Jasper and Alice were going to spend that much time apart willingly seemed silly. They loved each other, that much was obvious, and despite the fact that he seemed really uncomfortable around Lily she weirdly liked having him around.

She smiled over at Bella as she caught her staring at her getting ready to leave that afternoon.

"Is this okay?"

"Absolutely," Bella said, attempting to be reassuring, "Please. You guys will have fun."

Lily smiled, "Okay. It's just that I need a minute to recharge and stuff."

Bella crossed the space between them and held Lily's hands in hers.

"I promise its fine. I'll just be worried the whole time, but you promised to text and call so I'll be okay. I'll take care of Charlie too."

Lily chuckled as she thought of the fact she had more convincing to do with Bella than Charlie. She nodded and patted her back pocket where her phone was.

"I promise."

In that moment Edward honked and both girls picked up their backpacks and headed out the door. Lily was still smiling when they reached the car, despite that it was Edward picking them up today. Lily chatted civilly with Edward all the way to school and even waved to them both as she headed for her locker.

Nothing was going to upset her today; she was headed out with her new best friend to spend the entire weekend in a place where a decent cup of coffee wouldn't be far away. They could chat away in quaint little shops as they outfitted Lily for the upcoming festivities and rainy weather.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket, shocking her, as she'd all but forgotten about it being there. She took it out and looked at it inside her locker so she wouldn't get caught using it.

_Be safe. _

The small, short message from Jay caused her smile to falter for a moment before she placed the phone on silent and slid it into her locker. As she shut the door she looked over to see Alice's beaming face on the other side of it. At this point Lily wasn't even shocked to see her there and the slight heart attacks Alice gave her had all but stopped at her sudden appearances.

"Good news. Emmett and Rosalie are home for the weekend and I got them to come with us. He's the biggest so I'm sure everyone will be happy."

Lily laughed as she thought of big, huge Emmett in dainty little shops in Seattle with three girls. She shared her entertaining thoughts with Alice as they continued to class and they were both laughing as Lily walked into her first class and left Alice at the door.

Thankfully, the school day ended quickly and both Alice and Lily were ecstatic. They walked quickly to Alice's car and decided to head to Lily's first to pick up her suitcase and then to Alice's house to meet up with everyone before leaving for Seattle.

Thankfully Charlie wasn't home yet and Lily ran upstairs quickly to retrieve her small suitcase. She didn't think she could handle another conversation about the possible horrible outcomes of this weekend again. Deep down she was nervous about this weekend, but she didn't want to talk herself out of leaving. She bounded out the door and to the open trunk before sliding back into Alice's car as they sped off down the road.

Edward and Alice's driving could not be more different and they were at the large Cullen house before Lily even realized. The girl's conversation echoed off the walls as they entered the house and Alice called out for Rosalie and Emmett. Lily was a little shocked as Emmett was even bigger than the pictures she'd seen. She shuffled back to Alice's side as the couple bent down to grab their bags. They all three called out a goodbye to their parents as they darted for the door.

"Your parents aren't coming?" Lily asked, exasperated.

She didn't know Charlie too well, but she was sure lying to him was right up there with having sex before marriage. Alice read Lily's face and rushed to explain.

"They said since Emmett is coming that we could go without them, but Jasper couldn't go."

Alice just shrugged like this realization didn't bother her in the slightest and she bounded out the door to her still running car. Emmett and Rosalie ambled into the large, lifted jeep in the garage, throwing their bags in the back. Even their vehicles seemed to match what she knew of their personalities as Lily looked over to see the bright red sports car she knew must be Rosalie's. Lily caught Rosalie's eye and the girls exchanged a small smile. To say Rosalie's beauty was intimidating was an understatement, but she seemed nice enough so Lily wouldn't let it take a hit to her self-esteem.

They pulled out of the driveway and headed down the gravel roads that lead to the highway. She stole a look at the large house as it disappeared from view and the realization hit her that they would be gone… all weekend. This seemed a little daunting as the tree cover broke slightly as did the small security it had offered her since she had arrived. She slouched back into the leather as Alice chatted happily away, not needing much from Lily to continue, which she appreciated. She let her mind wonder as they continued their journey and remembered the first time she had stepped foot in the Cullen house.

As it was with Charlie and Bella she had become part of the family with the Cullens quickly. She spent most afternoons with Alice and Jasper and that meant being around their absurdly gorgeous family too. Most of the time that didn't include Rosalie and Emmett, as they had already graduated, but the room was always oddly balanced when she was in it with them regardless.

The sun was setting as they pulled into the parking lot of a hotel. It only had two stories, but it was as daunting as a larger one. It had all the looks of an industrial warehouse, but it's warm lights from the large from windows told a different story.

They walked into together and everyone talked easily enough. Rosalie walked beside Lily and seemed on the verge of saying something several times before seeming to decide against it. They entered the lobby and Alice checked in as everyone stood back though Rosalie and Emmett seemed to be doing this out of habit. Lily looked around and noticed that most people were staring at the trio and realized that they were accustomed to not standing right next to each other, as it would probably appear menacing.

The bellhop was called over to retrieve the bags and everyone headed for the elevator. Alice gave Rosalie the key to their room as they rode up together. Emmett told everyone of his excitement regarding dinner, rubbing his stomach for effect, causing Rosalie to roll her eyes and everyone else to laugh at their antics.

Lily's mouth was slightly agape as they stepped off the elevator and she took in her surroundings. Everything was so beautiful and she could hardly believe her eyes at most of it. This being just the hallway she was slightly nervous at what she might find beyond any of these doors. She felt more out of place than she had in a while.

Rosalie and Emmett stopped at one of the first doors down the right side of the hallway. They entered their room and waved to the girls as Alice and Lily continued. Alice stopped in front of their door, inserted the key, and pushed the door open wide to reveal their haven for the weekend. They walked into the small, but perfect, living space as the bellhops sat the bags just inside the door.

The décor could not be more perfect as all the beautiful outdoors seemed to be inside. The curtains were white with tall, thin trees printed on them. Everything was in dark reds and greens as she scanned what she could see. To her right was a fireplace with large stones surrounding the glass and it appeared to be two-sided as Lily could see the three steps that lead to a small bedroom on the left and a matching one on the right.

She walked closer to the window to move back the curtains and let her hand skim the dark wood of the table nearby as she passed. She placed each hand on the center of the curtain and pulled to reveal the beautiful landscape of water and mountains. It was more than picturesque and Lily held her breath to match the sight before her.

She hadn't even noticed Alice walk up directly behind her and she jumped slightly as she began to talk.

"Wow. That never gets old," Alice said, motioning toward the view.

Alice turned suddenly, picked up Lily's bags near the door, and headed to the room on the right Lily assumed would be hers. While she loved Bella and sharing a room with her she would definitely enjoy her own space for the weekend.

Alice sat her tiny green suitcase on the floor and went to climb onto the bed. Lily just giggled as Alice began to pull back the duvet and climb in. Lily was afraid she would fall right to sleep if she jumped in with Alice and she headed to the bathroom instead.

"Woo. I can't believe this place Alice," Lily almost shouted.

She was now looking over a large, marble bathtub and a walk-in shower with no door. Even the shower head looked amazing and Lily realized she probably looked awestruck as she wondered around. She turned back to Alice and smiled sheepishly.

"Don't worry," Alice said, walking to her side and taking her hand, "I always feel a little out of place when we go on vacation too."

"Out of place is definitely how I feel, but I'll be okay."

"Okay," Alice seemed happier as Lily looked resolved not to feel guilty, but to have fun.

"So let's get ready and then we'll go get Rosalie and Emmett and head to dinner."

"Sounds perfect," Lily smiled, "Alice…"

Alice turned back to meet Lily's gaze again, "Yes?"

"Thank you."

Alice beamed, "You're welcome."

"Not just for this weekend," Lily corrected.

She wasn't sure what she'd do without Alice. She had made her comfortable and made it certainly easier to adjust. She could see where she belonged when Alice was around as if she wasn't going to disrupt everyone's life by being here. She made Lily feel sane when everything seemed so crazy.

"I know, "Alice smiled softer and walked out the bathroom door.

She skipped down the steps and headed to her room to get ready. Alice seemed more a fairytale character at times, but it made Lily giggle and she headed back to get ready. She passed her suitcase and picked her phone out of a side pocket. She text Bella and then Charlie to tell them she had safely arrived. She hovered over the button that would allow the same type of message to Jay. She took a deep breath and sent a similar one to him before placing her phone on the bed.

She turned over the knob to the shower and allowed it to heat up as she took off her clothes and tip toed across the slightly cold tile. She could hear Alice's high pitched voice over the raindrop sounding shower as she got in.

Everything all but disappeared when she entered the shower and let the steam and warm water envelope her aching body. She hadn't realized how tense she was until right now as every muscle seemed to be relaxing. She was perfectly content to stand right there for the rest of the night, but she decided against it and reached over to get the complimentary bath products.

Before she was ready she was getting out of the shower and pulling on a robe from a nearby hook. The bathroom was less chilly than before as the steam was still hanging in the air. She opened the door that lead to the bedroom and let it file out. She walked back and wiped off the nearest circular mirror dabbing her hair down with a small hand towel hanging by the sink.

She got ready quickly, putting on minimal makeup, as she hummed quietly to herself. She looked over and noticed the screen to her phone was lit, signaling a call or text, and decided to check it before putting on her predetermined shoes sitting on the floor beside the bed. She jumped up slightly and lay on her stomach as she pulled the phone up to her face to read.

She flipped through the notifications that stated Charlie and Bella had acknowledged they had received her message. Her heart slightly faltered as she noticed the third notification from Jay.

_Call me when you can…_

She couldn't stop the sudden lurch in her stomach as she looked over the text message. She knew it was probably nothing, but the idea that he had a girlfriend or even possibly something much worse ran through her head before she could stop it.

Her fingers hovered over the button that would send a call and she noticed that they were shaking just slightly. She wondered if she'd rather get it over with or ignore it for the weekend so that she could have fun. Lily stalled for what felt like hours as she invented every possible outcome and scenario before she finally pushed the button. She jumped slightly as the dial tone rang through the phone even though she knew it had been her to call.

She continued to listen as it continued to ring and she suddenly hoped that no one would answer. She looked to the door silently hoping that Alice would come in and save her as another ring sounded in her ear.

"Hello?"

Lily couldn't help the smile that spread as she heard his voice. She cursed herself mentally, preparing herself for the onslaught of the mystery issue.

"Hey," Lily said quietly, barely audible.

The line was quiet for a second and Lily thought she might need to repeat herself only louder as her heart rate sped up.

Jay sighed and Lily's mind raced not wanting to be the one to break the silence.

"I really need to take to you," he began, "when you get back to town."

Lily's brows furrowed as she tried to make sense of what he had just said, "Umm..." she said, trying to keep her voice from breaking, "why don't you just tell me now. What does it matter?"

"Well, babe, I'm in La Push," he spat the words out in a hurry.

Her head was suddenly spinning and she certainly hadn't missed that he had called her 'babe'. She shook her head from the fog as she suddenly realized she would be seeing him, in person, in a few days' time.

She was suddenly giddy despite her worries, "Okay."

Suddenly Lily saw Alice's form out of her peripheral and she turned to smile at her. Alice leaned against the doorframe, a question on her face. Lily held up one finger to signal she was almost finished, but Alice didn't move.

"Well, Alice is finished getting ready. Should I call you later?"

"Sure, sure."

"Okay," Lily said, not wanting to end the call, "bye."

"Bye babe."

Lily didn't want to work herself up over nothing, but she could have sworn she heard a smile in his face as he hung up. She desperately hoped it was true and her mind now ran wild with other scenarios as she turned to Alice.

"It was Jay."


	8. This Must Be The Place

"We need to head to Jacksonville soon before your birthday present expires," Edward said suddenly.

Bella looked up and scrunched her eyebrows. Bella had been staring off into her untouched cereal bowl and she jumped slightly at the unexpected noise. Edward was simply gazing back plainly and offered nothing further to show the meaning of the new, abrupt conversation. She wondered if it had anything to do with Charlie being in the next room and the fact that he could clearly hear now. Usually Edward spoke only low enough for her so it must mean this was for Charlie's benefit. As if on cue his chair creaked to indicate that he had gotten up and would be joining them.

"Jacksonville, huh?" Charlie questioned, "That would be great for your mom since she can't come to graduation after all."

He didn't seem to care that he had just revealed he'd been eavesdropping as he walked fully into the kitchen now. Both of them were clearly nervous and Bella knew it had everything to do with Lily being gone. Sure, Seattle was probably the worst place for her to be right now, but it wouldn't have really mattered. She wasn't with them and that's the part that set both of them on edge.

"Yeah," Bella conceded, never taking her eyes off Edward, "that would be really fun."

"You should take Lily since there are two tickets. I'm sure it won't be hard to transfer it from me to her."

Bella suddenly understood the purpose of the conversation like a light bulb had gone off above her head. This would probably be the least awkward situation for both Lily and Renee or at least she hoped. This was also a painless way to get Charlie on board though he could hardly protest. Edward seemed to realize that she finally understood and smiled wide, dazzling her as usual

"Jacksonville is better than Seattle," Charlie mumbled, echoing Bella's silent sentiments, "Have you heard from Lily today?"

"Dad, it's early," Bella said, "They're probably not even up yet."

He nodded and seemed to be okay with this explanation as he headed back into the living room. The TV had been a symphony of whistles and boos in the last second and Charlie hurried as if he had missed something important. The chair creaked yet again to signal he had resigned himself to the game as Bella pulled out her phone to check again.

Bella hadn't known about Lily or the situation as long as Charlie, but she certainly was having the same reactions every time her sister wasn't with her: full-blown anxiety. Charlie and Bella would just need to realize that Lily had grown up without them and survived so far and could certainly do so without being constantly watched while she was here as well.

Edward chuckled low as she thumbed through her notifications once more. The blush spread quickly on her face as she recognized she was no better than Charlie worrying constantly. She sat her phone in her lap finally and forced a smile at Edward, but he knew better.

"It's okay Bella. Alice is watching everything very carefully. Everything will be fine," Edward reassured.

Bella took a deep breath and tried to be as calm as Edward seemed to be. She reached across the length of the table to hold his hand. She fiddled with his fingers absentmindedly before finally getting up and dropping her hardly eaten breakfast in the sink. She drummed her fingers on the countertops before finally resigning herself to getting ready for the day.

She knew she was being silly. Lily was probably safer with half of the Cullens in Seattle then anywhere. Bella just couldn't seem to shake this feeling; a feeling that probably had a lot to do with the recent upswing in murders in the very city her long lost sister was now currently sleeping. She had to get a grip on herself and remember that Lily was safe and no one was taking her away again.

"I should take a shower," Bella stated, "I'm helping Angela with her announcements sometime this afternoon."

"I remember," Edward reminded her.

Bella finally turned to Edward, "What are you going to be doing today?"

Edward shrugged, "Probably hanging out with Jasper. He's useless without Alice so I'll probably take him hunting or something to keep him distracted for a little while."

Edward shrugged again as if this was of no consequence and this weekend would be like any other. Bella trudged upstairs finally to begin getting ready. She was a little upset Edward hadn't offered more of a distraction in their conversation.

She took her time with each step, leaving her phone in the room while she showered so she wouldn't be tempted to check it again. She slipped into the small bathtub and attempted to let her mind go blank to stop the worrying, if only for a minute. There was no such luck and Bella finally turned off the water when it was starting to turn cold. She dried off deliberately and walked into her room, but still left little wet footprints as she went.

She breathed a sigh of relief as she noticed the familiar green light that signaled a message was waiting for her. Bella grabbed the phone from the bed and pursed her lips when she noticed that the message wasn't from Lily or the others, but from Jacob. Aside from their meeting the other day she hadn't heard anything from him since then. She wasn't sure she was going to since Edward had stated Jacob had no intention of seeing Lily or coming clean. She assumed she was going to have to haul her butt back up to La Push to scold him before she got anything out of him.

_I told her I was here and wanted to talk when she got home_

Bella thought for a moment how to respond best, suddenly giddy as she realized how ecstatic Lily would be getting to see him again. She could only imagine Lily's face as she had gotten the news and she hoped that Lily would still be this happy when Jacob finally came partially clean. Bella was also happy that Jacob seemed to have come to this conclusion without very much interference from her. She hoped this was setting precedence for their new relationship that didn't involve Bella getting into Lily and Jacob's business.

She started thinking of all the stories Lily had told her about her "Jay" and it was funny to realize she was also talking about Bella's best friend unknowingly. She wasn't even aware just how romantic, sweet, and downright suave Jacob could be when he was trying and honestly that was already more than she cared to know. She was also very relieved that she _didn't _know all these things first hand. She knew she would have to divulge the source of her relationship to Jacob eventually to Lily and it was already going to be pretty hard without adding anything else.

_Do you need me to come up there? _She wrote back quickly throwing her phone down on the bed. Bella already knew Jacob's answer, but she also needed him to know she was there for him. She looked over at the small bed and then to the closet as she started to mentally go through her wardrobe trying to find something to wear today.

She thumbed through all the clothes now very crowded in the little space of the closet. Bella thought back to the first night with Lily in the room before she had gotten used to the shared space. She also thought of the fact that she still getting used to the much smaller bed with Edward. That first night had certainly been interesting as they tried to find the best way to sleep on such a small area. Bella now basically lay on top of Edward's body and even though she was wrapped in blankets to keep warm she wasn't complaining.

She trekked over to her dresser realizing she didn't hang up what she really wanted to wear today. She spotted her favorite pair of sweatpants and t shirt combination and pulled them out quickly. Bella ran the towel over her hair deciding to let it dry naturally knowing she wouldn't have to leave for a while, checking her phone and the time simultaneously noticing a reply from Jacob.

_No. Gotta patrol today. So tired. _

This brought another issue to the forefront of her mind she had pushed back. She hated that Jacob and his friends had deemed it necessary to constantly patrol the woods surrounding their homes and hers. Bella knew they were running themselves ragged looking for Victoria, but she hadn't shown herself in weeks.

She had hoped things were dying down for a while and that Jake and everyone could take a break, but no such luck. Sam Uley, Jacob's pack leader, had only ramped things up for everyone. He had stated that he just knew Victoria would try again sooner rather than later and he didn't want to be caught without their guard up. Everyone had reluctantly agreed; not that they really had a choice. She hadn't really thought about Victoria since Lily had arrived, but it was obvious the pack had.

_K. Call me later. _

She tucked her phone securely in her oversized pocket in her sweats and headed out the door. Bella bounced slightly down the steps, her week's laundry in her arms, heading to start a load. She knew better than leave it to the last minute on Sunday. Charlie had left some of his own laundry on the washer so Bella threw everything in together knowing that neither of them required any special precautions with their clothes.

She wondered momentarily if she should grab Lily's too, but ultimately decided against it. They had gotten along great so far, but maybe washing her sister's underwear without her knowing wasn't the best idea. They had recently taken to chatting until Lily fell asleep and Edward came back over almost every night. A small smile set on her face and she hoped that Lily would send her a message soon so she could get some rest while Lily was away. Last night had been restless and she knew that without something from Lily to say she was safe she wouldn't get any sleep tonight either.

She shut the lid, started the wash, and headed into the living room where Charlie and Edward now sat uncomfortably. She sat beside Edward and almost at the same time Charlie stood up, looking down at the pair. He placed his hands in his pockets before walking into the kitchen awkwardly.

"Well I think I might head up to La Push and see Billy," he said, already heading for the door.

"I'm going to Angela Weber's house later to help with her graduation announcements so I might not be home in time for dinner."

"That's fine Bells. I can just eat up there or pick something up," Charlie waved, grabbing his keys off the hook, "Have fun!"

Bella stared at the place where Charlie had just stood; perplexed by his sudden change in plans as she was pretty sure he had arranged to sit in his chair all day. He also rarely left Bella and Edward alone in the house together so she was even more confused as she turned back to face the TV.

"He was waiting for you to get out of the shower," Edward answered her unspoken question, "When you came down in that he thought he was safe to leave."

They both chuckled as Edward pointed to Bella's choice of outfit as they began to get comfortable lying together, knowing that Charlie had nothing to be worried about regardless. He pulled the afghan off the back of the couch, as he always did, to shield her from his cold body. As soon as she was rolled up in the blanket her phone vibrated between them and she fought to remove her arms.

_Hey! I'm about to head out with Alice and everyone to go shopping. I'll call you when we're done so I can tell you everything we get. Should I get a prom dress? _

Bella giggled slightly as she read Lily's message unable to keep the happiness from bubbling onto her face; pleased that she messaged finally. She did find it a little surprising that Lily said nothing about Jacob or him being so close, but she opened a new message to respond.

_I did prom already, but if you want to go you should go! I know Alice would love it. _

Bella reread Lily's message again making sure that she hadn't missed anything else she needed to respond to before she hit send finally. She knew Alice would be ecstatic to have a reason to attend prom again and she knew Lily hadn't ever due to being held back two grades. That thought still caused Bella to get angry grasping just how extreme the lies had been for Lily.

She had finally broached the subject with her sister a couple of days earlier. She was extremely happy that Lily had confided anything in her, but she knew it wasn't everything. Bella knew that Lily would tell her when she was ready. They shared the disgust regarding the lies both of them had been told and also agreed Lily's situation had been much worse.

Bella desperately hoped that the seemingly easy transition Lily had made from one life to another was real. She wanted nothing more than all the drama for Lily to be behind her, with the exception of Jacob. Bella knew her own drama was far from over, but she wanted for Lily to have already dealt with the hardest thing she would have to go through. She knew Lily being involved in Bella's life, and apparently Jacob's, meant that probably wasn't the case, but she could dream.

"Did you want me to drive you to Angela's?" Edward asked, interrupting her train of thought.

"No," Bella said, "I haven't driven my truck in a week. I want to drive over there."

Edward chuckled and went back to holding her gently in his arms. He would never understand the fascination Bella had with her truck. He had turned the channel while she had been reading and replying and noticed it was now on some sort of TV movie before yawning wide. The sleep she had missed the night before was catching up to her and she didn't know if she wanted to stop it. A little nap would probably be okay so she wouldn't be falling asleep at Angela's house later.

Bella's thoughts drifted back to Lily as her eyes began to close. She had spent almost all of her life without her sister, but now she couldn't remember what life had been like before. Edward had described meeting Bella as if a meteor had shot across a starry night and that was how she now felt about Lily.

Edward began humming her lullaby as she drifted further to sleep, dreaming of her sister.

"Bella," Edward's voice sounded far away, "it's time to get up."

He kissed her lightly on the lips and her heart skipped its usual beat causing her eyes to flutter open. She pulled him down for another kiss before he pulled away as he usually did, smiling wide at her obvious inability to control her hormones.

"What time is it?" she asked, groggily.

"3:15," Edward stated.

"Oh my God, I can't believe I slept that long."

"Well you hardly got any sleep last night," Edward said, almost chiding.

Bella released herself from her afghan cocoon and stretched out her arms and legs before yawning. She rolled over to her other side before finally sitting up on the edge of the couch. At last she leaned down, kissed him lightly, and stood up stretching more as she headed to the bathroom. She ran a brush through her hair quickly before finally deciding to put it in a loose ponytail. Bella thought of changing before ultimately resolving that Angela wouldn't care what she had on so it didn't matter.

She splashed some water on her face to get the sleep out of her eyes before heading back downstairs. Edward was already standing at the door waiting to escort her to her car. She grabbed her forgotten phone off the table before grabbing her keys and heading out the door Edward was holding open. They walked slowly to her old, rusted truck and he placed several sweet kisses on her lips before finally shutting the door.

The truck roared to life in a way only it could and the familiar sights and sounds greeted Bella. She beamed and went to reverse out of the driveway, noticing that Edward was waiting. He followed her all the way to Angela's before finally waving and driving off. She was grinning all the way to Angela's door and still had a goofy smile on her face as Ben answered.

"Oh," Bella said, startled, "hi Ben. I thought you were going to be out."

"I am," Ben, Angela's boyfriend, said correcting Bella, "just saying goodbye before I go see a movie."

Angela came downstairs finally and hugged Bella tightly before ushering her inside. Angela and Ben said their goodbyes at the door before she headed up the stairs with Bella. She thought Angela had been exaggerating, but a large pile of blank envelopes and graduation announcements welcomed her as she entered the room.

Angela looked repentant as Bella surveyed the damage, "No Ang its fine! We can probably finish these today."

They got right to work and chatted happily away as they did; only stopping to verify an address or spelling of a name. When they ran out of topics they turned on a TV show to play in the background as they worked. They asked each other questions periodically before the topic of Lily finally came up.

"So," Angela started, "How's Lily doing?"

Angela had been one of the first to welcome Lily, outside of Alice, and she seemed genuinely concerned for her new friend. Bella told Angela that Lily seemed to be having fun with Alice in Seattle and how she may have decided to go to prom this year. Angela echoed Bella's opinions about Alice being excited to go again and being happy she didn't have to. She realized that Angela was usually on the same page with her and a twinge of sadness suddenly interrupted her mood. Bella recognized she would soon have to give Angela up as she couldn't take her into the new life she had picked for herself.

She instantly began to wonder if she should wait a while, have more time with her sister before she made the transition that could not be undone. A couple more years one way or the other wasn't the worst thing that could happen. She would think more on it before approaching it with Edward though she knew he would be thrilled.

The last envelope was addressed and Bella finally looked to the window which was now darkened. She looked over at the time on her phone and noticed several new notifications. She hadn't even realized she had placed it on silent accidentally. She scanned through everything and noticed Edward's last message had stated he was coming over. Bella inadvertently glanced out the window again before realizing she wouldn't be able to see anything. Angela packed their supplies up and headed downstairs with Bella to place the finished announcements by the door for her parents to send.

At the moment the doorbell rang and Bella thought Edward would be standing on the other side of it. Bella was pleased to see it was actually Ben returning from his movie. She was also happy to see whatever was causing Edward to be waiting for her suddenly wasn't that urgent.

Bella said goodbye to Angela and she was happy for the distraction Ben provided so she could slip out without feeling rude. Hopefully Angela hadn't noticed the sudden change in her mood. She almost ran to her truck, waving to Angela in the doorway as she hurried. She put in the passcode to her phone quickly before turning to open her door, thrusting herself inside quickly.

She turned on the truck and went to reverse just as there was an almost too quiet knock at her window. Bella jumped and clutched her heart before putting it back in park and scooting over to allow Edward in the driver's seat. She turned to see Angela's front door was shut and she hadn't seen the exchange or sudden appearance of Edward.

"Is everything okay?" she asked, as soon as he was halfway in.

"No. We need to get to my house immediately."

Bella could no longer stop her heart from its erratic beating or the tears that now welled in her eyes. Images now flooded her mind of Lily hurt somewhere in Seattle and she couldn't seem to catch her breath. Edward reached over and pulled her to his side as he pushed the ancient vehicle to speeds it normally did not go. Bella had been thinking the worst the minute Edward had appeared anyway, but now she couldn't even bring herself to look at her phone again. She wasn't sure she could even ask the questions necessary as they rushed along without her voice breaking.

They were turning down the path that led to his house in what felt like no time at all. Her breath further caught in her throat as she saw a familiar white VW Rabbit parked in the shadows of the large, white house. There was no mistaking just exactly who this involved and how serious it was; her worst fears were now confirmed. Bella pulled herself from Edward's arms and threw herself from the truck as soon as it was even remotely stopped, unable to get inside fast enough.

Edward was already up the steps and through the door before Bella made it through the driveway fully. The tears falling freely as she saw the look on Jacob's face through the clear, glass, floor-to-ceiling window. Her heart felt as if it had fallen out somewhere along the road and was no longer beating. She was wondering suddenly why Charlie wasn't involved and fumbled with the phone in her hand she was still holding like a life line. All of a sudden she heard Edward speak the words that caused a lump to catch in her throat.

"Jacob," she heard him say, "how much do you know of your legends?"

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As always don't forget to check out mrsalicehale(((do)))((t))wordpress(((d)))((ot))com for all the latest teasers &amp; character info. That's also the first place that chapters get added and it's just been revamped (pun intended). And a little FYI, I'm thinking of only having my stories there too so if you want all the latest info for me I'd definitely subscribe to the wordpress. Thanks kids! xoxo MrsAliceHale


	9. Folklore

_Thank you all for reading! The response to the last chapter was overwhelming! Leave me some reviews if you get a chance or feel so compelled! Also, don't forget to check out MrsAliceHale((do))(((t)))wordpress((do))(((t)))com for all the latest! I post there first and have teasers, character pics, etc! It may soon be the only place you can find my stories so make sure to subscribe :) xoxo, Mrs Alice Hale_

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Lily looked down at her hands half expecting to see blood there. Alice was weaving through the sparse traffic at an alarming speed, but it wasn't quite registering with Lily. She just continued to stare at her hands. She was also too distraught to actually ask Alice where in the hell they were headed.

No one had said a word to her as Emmett had all but picked her up and put her in the seat. She certainly didn't blame them due to the state they found her. Lily knew in the back of her head somewhere that Alice was probably taking her to Charlie before she turned her in. She didn't think she deserved that much kindness.

She finally laid her head back on the headrest and was surprised that tears weren't gushing from her eyes like she felt they should be. Images immediately flooded her mind as she closed her eyes. Her atrocious actions greeted her as soon as they were shut. She shot back to her previous position at once; bent over staring at her hands.

"Lily," Alice spoke in a soft whisper, "everything is going to be okay"

Lily couldn't stop her eyes from bulging in their sockets at Alice's remark as she turned. Why in the world was she _comforting_ Lily? Alice should be scolding, yelling, and even cowering away from Lily, but certainly not comforting. She continued to stare over at Alice as she faced ahead into the night.

Since Alice seemed like she wasn't returning to Lily and the strange detour of their previously nonexistent conversation she stared out at the window. She looked at the trees buzzing past the window and was suddenly ready to start talking. It was probably the shock wearing off she concluded before she spoke.

"Alice, where are you taking me?"

Alice didn't make any motion that indicated she had heard Lily. "Alice," Lily started, more forcefully than a moment ago, "where are you taking me?"

All at once Alice turned to face Lily fully taking her concentration off the road. "I am taking you to my house," she said plainly, as if this shouldn't alarm Lily. She didn't immediately face back toward the road and Lily worked up the courage to respond.

"You should take me to a police station Alice," Lily looked down again, ashamed, "this isn't safe."

Alice reached over and patted her back apparently trying to appear comforting again. The icy sting that was usually present when Alice, or any of the Cullens touched her, was now a dull ache. Lily couldn't take anymore and she shook Alice's hand off her back. Lily resolved that Alice was very clearly in shock too and couldn't be counted upon to be rational in this moment. She decided to plead the case of being immediately incarcerated, which was obviously necessary, to Carlisle and Esme when she entered their home.

She resolved to keep her mind on that objective as a way to keep everyone around her safe. She would concentrate on that thought alone until she knew everyone was not in danger. She decided not to look over at Alice anymore in case she was going to try and ease her mind any further. Lily couldn't take Alice being this way towards her. She wasn't sure what had caused her vicious reaction in the first place, but she was sure she could snap again anytime. And this time it was just tiny little Alice in her way.

Lily began to hum low to keep from thinking of anything at all as they drove. All the sudden the large, white house came into view. The gravel underneath the wheels seemed to be screaming at Lily and her heart started to beat wildly in her chest.

Everyone was waiting outside and Lily thought that would make it easier somehow. She seemed to notice at once that Charlie wasn't there and she was confused again. They weren't thinking of attempting to handle this themselves, were they? She didn't think they would, but with Alice acting as if this wasn't terrifying she was starting to think otherwise.

Her heart stopped unexpectedly when her eyes fell on Jay and his large, bulky frame. Now she was really confused! Why in the world was Jay there? How in the hell had anyone known to call him? She had told Alice yesterday that he was here, but had she looked in her phone and told him his girlfriend had gone crazy?

Alice finally lulled the car to a stop and an errant thought entered Lily's mind. She thought of running as far and as fast as she could for just a second. She wouldn't really have done it, but she knew that's what was keeping her from opening the door. She could no longer trust her body as it had betrayed her so fully; taking over when her mind had taken leave.

She sighed shakily and placed a trembling hand on the door handle, everyone's eyes on her. Lily pushed it open and it now seemed to weigh a thousand pounds. The comfort of the familiarity of Alice and her vehicle were now gone as the cold Washington air whipped around her. Without a word Jay walked over to Lily, took her hand, and led her to the stairs and into the house. Everyone else followed behind them silently and Edward and Bella shut the door as they were the last ones in. She needed to build up her resolve again so that she could ask Carlisle what was needed; to call the police.

"No one is calling the police, Lily," Edward said finally, "We need you to sit down and let us try to explain what we think happened before we make any decisions, okay?"

Decisions? The decision had already been made by Lily in the car. She needed to be locked up immediately before she hurt anyone else. Also, how in the hell had Edward known the one thing she was repeating in her head? Sit down? Not a chance. She balled up her fists at her sides. Jay's hand falling to his own side as well since Lily had unexpectedly let go.

Rosalie and Emmett walked into the room and sat on the sofa nearest Lily and then everyone else followed their lead. She wanted to scream and yell that everybody was being insane right now, sitting there calmly with her in their midst: a killer.

"Lily, listen," Edward started again, "there are several things that I need to say before we start."

She offered nothing so he continued on his own. "First, there are things that you have been led to believe are myths that are, in fact, true. Second, I am one of those things as is every member of my family here, including Jacob or Jay as you call him. Finally, I know exactly what you are thinking and I promise you that no one is going to have you incarcerated."

Lily finally sat on the small ottoman that was positioned almost in the middle of the room. She looked at Jay as Edward said his name or was it Jacob? Her head was a mess with everything, but the number one thing that wasn't making any damn sense was why they were talking about myths? None of it was important. She needed to be locked away for everyone's safety and it needed to be now regardless of what Edward or anyone else said!

"Lily," Edward spoke softly again, saying her name fondly, "you need to calm down."

As she hadn't vocalized anything since she'd gotten out of the car she stared at him, eyes wide. "Excuse me?"

"Are you ready now?" Edward asking his own question and ignoring hers fully, "There's much to go over and I'm sure you'll be getting tired soon."

There was no way she was going to be getting tired any time soon, but she was ready to talk. Maybe when they were finished they would begin to take Lily seriously if she asked. She nodded once at Edward.

"Thank you. Carlisle?"

Lily assumed since Edward had taken charge of the situation since she had arrived he would be doing all the talking. She turned to face Carlisle, blush rising in her cheeks, fully mortified now as she realized the danger she had put his children in. Both Carlisle and Esme had trusted her fully and accepted her the moment she had arrived and she had repaid them by risking their children's lives. Despite her embarrassment she didn't look away: she had to face this head on.

"I'm not sure if you spoke to Alice on your way here, but she called us and let us know where and how she found you after you disappeared."

Alice now shook her head at Carlisle to indicate they hadn't had a chance to talk on their way home and that he would need to start at the beginning wherever that was. Carlisle nodded back to her and continued, "Do you remember what happened before everything began?"

Lily wasn't sure why that was significant as it had ended so violently. She was determined to give her full attention to Carlisle. It was the least he deserved. She started to rack her brain for anything that might be what they were looking for. Against her better judgement she shut her eyes and finally invited the images back into her mind.

"Red eyes," she said, her voice breaking from not being used in the last hour. Lily was a little shocked she was even talking, but she kept going. "Just red eyes. Then I guess I woke up or whatever." She stopped there, not keen to revisit that section of her memories that involved a mutilated body.

"Why?" she asked, opening her eyes to stop the too vivid pictures from playing. Lily still didn't understand why any of this was significant, but she had calmed her heart to a reasonable rate.

"May I examine you?" Carlisle countered.

Lily had reached her breaking point. None of this was making any logical fucking sense. Edward made a motion for her to relax, but she couldn't stop the word vomit from rising in her mouth. "What the hell is going on?" she finally shouted.

"We believe we know what happened to you, but I wanted to run some tests regardless."

"Then tell me damnit!" Lily screamed, too angry to be ashamed.

"Lily, we believe that man was a vampire. A vampire that kills people and therefore your normally dormant instincts were activated."

She snorted as she looked around the room at all the eyes watching her. She pleaded with her own for someone to give her a serious explanation. What instincts? Dormant? What the hell did that mean? When they all seemed to be staring back at her like this was completely plausible she turned back to Carlisle and unexpectedly everything clicked.

"You think I'm fucking Buffy and that's why I hacked some guy up?" She probed, her language more colorful that she had meant for it to be.

"Buffy?" Carlisle questioned, looking puzzled.

"Yes. We think you're a slayer for lack of a better word, Lily," Edward answered, understanding the reference.

This wasn't exactly calming her down, but it certainly explained why Alice wouldn't be keen on taking her to a police station. If this was really what they believed no police officer would have been able to help. At first she was a little concerned for everyone's mental health, but decided it best to let Carlisle examine her before anything else happened anyway. It could help her understand the blacking out that had occurred. She didn't want to be sitting in an interrogation room when the effects of a concussion, or worse, caught up with her.

She followed him upstairs wordlessly and allowed him to check her over. Carlisle was meticulous and she was just happy she didn't have an audience. Jay had followed initially before giving up at Lily's insistence that she would be fine. It was strange to see him this clingy.

Carlisle's inhuman speed was suddenly revealed as he rushed around the room, grabbing instruments here and there. Her primary emotion as she watched was awe as he was incredibly graceful despite his swiftness. She watched him relentlessly without ever asking the questions now burning in her mind.

Carlisle worked for what felt like an eternity and Lily hardly moved. Her muscles were beginning to protest the lack of use just as he was finishing. He wrote his last sentence before finally looking back up at her smiling serenely. He stood up and motioned for her to follow him back from the room. She knew it was now she needed to spark up a conversation, but she decided instantly to speak with someone else instead; someone she felt had more information on the topic.

This wasn't to say she felt Carlisle inept at anything, but she realized she was slightly more comfortable with Edward. Maybe comfortable wasn't the right word as she always felt on edge around him, but he'd been the most outspoken since they'd gotten here. She didn't know how she knew, but she knew he would hold no judgement in his eyes as she spoke her fears and asked her questions.

Lily walked into the large sitting area once more and noticed the conversation ceased when she entered; every eye was on her again. She looked to Alice, who appeared the weariest of the group, and then sat down unable to offer even a smile.

She immediately changed her mind when she realized she didn't know if she could take any more of the absurd conversation. She began to pace the crowded area trying to arrange her thoughts in any rational order. She needed to ask Carlisle to call the police. Had he discovered anything unusual physically with her? No, she needed to go home. She would figure this out somewhere else. Her thoughts were too disjointed to be helpful. Lily knew sitting here with a bunch of people that had accepted that supernatural explanation wouldn't be her best allies right now.

"I want to go home," she spoke softly and abruptly, looking to Edward, "and I would like you to take me please."

He nodded gravely before indicating that Bella and Jay should follow him, "No. Just you please."

Lily didn't look up to see if her words had hurt anyone's feelings as she left. She did know though that both Jay and Bella were staring holes into the back of her head, standing side by side. She didn't even need to look their way to see the shock of being pushed aside for Edward. This was all too much and she knew that he would tell her the truth no matter what. He wouldn't spare her feelings and that was the most important part right now. This way, if necessary, she could turn herself in or admit herself to a psychiatric hospital without any interference. She'd have a head start of sorts and she knew that having them there wouldn't allow her to think with a clear head.

Without anything further she walked to the door, opened it, and let the cool air hit her face again trying to clear her head. Edward was beside her in the next second signaling for her to continue down the steps first. She obliged and he walked one step behind her the whole way to his car. He seemed to be considering something before finally walking to the driver's side and getting in. It took Lily a moment to grasp he'd been deciding whether or not to open her door for her before ultimately deciding not to. She had to smile, despite the circumstances, at Edward's internal struggle with always being a gentleman.

She got into the slightly cool car which indicated it hadn't been used recently, pulled her light jacket a little closer, and shut the door. She finally allowed herself a look at the house and those who stood just inside. Lily knew that the car was tinted exceptionally well and no one would be able to see her leering. She catalogued each face and was surprised that Jay's seemed the most pained. Bella's almost matching his, but Jay seemed to be struggling to breath. She fought her very nature as she let Edward drive away, taking her further from him.

Lily didn't know where to begin or how to ask her questions now that she was alone in the car with Edward. She noticed that he was taking his normal tediously slow pace as he crawled back to Forks and her home… and Charlie.

"I will wait until you are ready before I take you back," Edward said, finishing her last thought.

She stared up at him quizzically and she let her mind wonder back to all that had transpired in the last couple of hours. There had been very little talking since Alice, Rosalie, and Emmett had discovered her hunched over a mutilated body. She wasn't even sure what had happened really, but as she'd said in the house, red eyes was all she remembered before that point.

"I'm ready whenever you are, Lily."

"I don't know where to start."

"Why don't you start with the biggest question you have."

"Why do you think I'm a slayer?"

"I think that man, with the red eyes, was a vampire, like I stated previously. I believe that for whatever reason you had instincts that had never been triggered before. It caused you to black out and kill him."

"Vampires are real?"

"Yes."

"That wasn't the biggest question you had though. Why don't you ask that?"

She bit her bottom lip as she contemplated the question. It was a simple enough request, but faced with it now she was looking to reword everything; it sounded rude the way she was saying it in her head. Edward chuckled a little to her left as he weaved around corners leisurely.

"What's so funny?"

"You are. You're worried about being rude. You are so much like your sister and you don't even realize it."

"You know what I'm thinking."

It wasn't a question really. Lily was forcing her mind to come to terms with it as she spoke. If this could true maybe, just maybe, she wasn't crazy. There was no way she was that lucky though: not to not be psychotic.

"You think that would be lucky?" Edward asked, now staring at her pondering something.

"Yes. If I'm a slayer like you say then I can stay. Buffy got to keep her friends and family around her. She didn't hurt them."

All at once she was fighting tears. They were stinging her eyes uncomfortably and she knew she couldn't voice anything else at this moment. If Edward was telling the truth it wouldn't matter: she wouldn't need to say anything else out loud.

"You still don't believe me?"

_I'm sorry_, she thought, _it's just too much_. _This is my luck, Edward. Thinking I could leave that horrible place behind and come here and be normal. Thinking something crazy wouldn't happen to me was crazy! This is my luck._

The tears were flowing freely now and she hadn't actually had to say anything after all. Her body seemed to think it enough as she was wracked with sobs next. All at once Edward was pulling her into a hug and she fought not to cringe at his touch as she had Carlisle's earlier.

"It's going to be okay. Okay as it can be," he corrected, before finishing, "but we have to talk first. I can't take you home like this."

She nodded against his chest, pulling back and attempting to wipe his ruined shirt. This set Edward off and he was now shaking, but with laughter. She cocked an eyebrow at him as he kept laughing. Finally a smile formed on her lips, tears still in her eyes. She couldn't seem to help herself. His laughter finally slowed as he looked back at her before shaking his head.

"It would take too long to explain. Let's get back to the issue at hand," he said, dismissing her perplexed looks.

"Okay."

"Ask the question, Lily."

Before she could stop herself she blurted out, "What are you?"

He nodded his head, seemingly happy she'd finally spoken her thoughts. "I told you, I am a vampire."

She nodded her head as well, matching his, before continuing. She knew she'd get one chance at this. She also knew she'd have to convince herself all over again in the morning. Lily knew her own mind and that it would work to protect itself as soon as she fell asleep. It would go to its work of blocking things out while making other things appear like a dream or a nightmare, whichever was most appropriate.

"Why didn't I do that to you?" Lily questioned, now speaking with her hands, "I mean, if you're one too."

"I'm not sure. I have some ideas."

She waited for him to keep talking, but when he didn't she started in again, "What is the one you think is most likely?"

"I think, since I am no longer wearing red eyes like the monster you met tonight that your hidden instincts did not kick in. However, if I remember correctly you have not liked me since the moment we met without truly knowing why."

She nodded again curtly as she remembered their first meeting and how irrationally angry she became as he talked. It was if his every word was grating on her actual nerves and causing her extreme pain. She looked back to him and noticed that he was lost, in she assumed, her thoughts and reminiscing of the past.

"Why was he a monster? Why is he… was he one and you're not?"

"I have killed people, Lily. I no longer do. Regardless of the reason I have and therefore I will always see myself as you saw him tonight. If he had red eyes it meant that human blood was in his system. That's what causes the color."

"What causes your color?"

"Animal blood."

She contemplated that and what he had just said. He still saw himself a monster and that was interesting to her. How could he think that Bella would love him like she did if he was a monster? Another question was now pestering her coming to the front of her mind. She knew for Edward it was probably like a billboard printing out her thoughts in front of her for him to read.

"Not exactly, but similar."

"Does Bella know?"

"Yes. There is more to that story, but I think I will let her tell it to you. She probably has a more detailed account."

Lily took a deep, cleansing breath and let her head hit the headrest like she had in Alice's car. Her mind was swimming with her unanswered questions, one coming right behind another. She rubbed her temples in an attempt to make them slow. Lily groaned out loud as the dizzying effect was back and she felt as if she might be sick all of the sudden.

"Are you worried that I could hurt you?"

"You could, but I don't believe you will. I think you have no control over who you go after, but since you've not come after me yet I don't think you will now."

"Did you know that I was like this?"

"No. I can't see the future," Edward seemed to stutter, as if on the verge of saying something, "I can only hear the thoughts of those around me. You didn't know this about yourself so I didn't know."

"Everyone's?"

"No. I can't hear Bella's thoughts."

"Strange."

"Yes. And maddening."

It was Lily's turn to chuckle. She imagined Edward had gotten quite used to his gift and what it afforded him. He seemed very comfortable answering her thoughts instead of her words. It must be disturbing to not be able to rely on that suddenly. He nodded his head in response to her inner dialogue as she continued to smile.

"Does Jay know?"

"Yes. Also, his name is Jacob. I thought he would have more time with you this evening and would have been able to tell you more."

"There's more?"

"Where he is concerned, yes."

She wondered if she should be more concerned about this. It wasn't bothering her terribly now and she turned over his new name, or real name, in her head a couple of times to get used to it: Jacob. She was grinning wide now before she could stop herself. It didn't matter that he hadn't told her his real name, but it did make her wonder why.

"That is not all he hasn't told you," Edward added, correcting her silent reverie.

"Really? What else?"

"Do you want me to tell you or would you like to give Jacob the chance?"

She pursed her lips thinking this over. She would give Jacob the chance before she demanded answers from Edward. Lily knew that was the right thing to do. He hadn't run screaming into the woods when she'd showed up so she would let him try to explain. Lily was sure whatever it was would be easily overcome for them. He hadn't been standing there with another woman when she'd arrived so she was sure it had to be okay whatever it was.

"Do you know him?" she asked, suddenly intrigued.

He _had_ seemed oddly comfortable in their presence. She had only barely allowed that to permeate her consequence stream of thoughts when she was with everyone else. Lily was too distraught when she'd arrived to think of much else clearly.

"Yes," Edward said matter-of-factly.

"Is he a vampire, too?"

"No."

"Should I be worried?"

"I don't believe so. We are the only vampires in this immediate area. There is an issue with several new vampires in Seattle, which we think you ran into this evening, but we are working to correct that problem."

Surprisingly Edward had put a lot of issues to rest for her in the last couple of minutes and she was more astonished she had actually taken him at his word. Lily also couldn't help but notice that he hadn't really answered her last question as it was intended. She had asked if she should be worried about Jacob, but surely Edward knew that. It was too much for her brain to comprehend at the moment, but it was also so ludicrous she seemed to have no choice but to consider it.

"Should I be locked up?"

"Again, I don't think so. Do you feel as if you are a harm to the general public?"

"I guess not," she admitted, noting that he had tacked on 'general public' at the end.

She didn't know much about this or vampires, but from what Edward had just said they weren't that common. She would have to concede that she wouldn't be a harm to the general public. He pulled the car back out onto the road again as if being given some signal. She hadn't even noticed they had stopped. He had probably done that when she'd broke down crying right before he hugged her. They were both quiet as they headed back to Charlie. Edward left her to her thoughts though she now knew he could hear.

_Tell Bella I'm sorry_, she thought in his general direction. She saw that he nodded out of the corner of her eye. Before Lily was truly ready they were pulling into the driveway and her eyes betrayed her apprehension. Edward placed his hands over hers and again she fought with the irrational feelings of hatred toward him.

"Would you like me to walk you inside?"

"No. I'll be fine."

He removed his hands and placed them back on the steering wheel. Edward gave her an encouraging smile before he added, "Lily, there is more to tell you. I would like to ask you to keep this to yourself. There is more danger in knowing."

"I understand," she lied.

He bowed his head to her as she finally removed herself from the car. Would she be able to go inside and act innocent for Charlie? No matter what Edward had said was the reason, her violent outburst had ended someone's life; no matter how depraved it may have been. She gathered herself up as she ascended the steps and opened the door, clutching her stomach.

"Hey Bells," Charlie said, turning his chair to face her finally, "Lily?"

He jumped from his seat, concern written all over his face as he reached out to her. "What's wrong sweetheart?"

"I feel like crap. I got sick in Alice's car tonight. She brought me back to her house to have Carlisle look at me. Edward brought me home. Carlisle said it was just a stomach bug. I just wanna go lay down," she spat out quickly.

She had thought out her excuse quickly in the short span of time between the car and the house. She knew she needed to say it fast before she forgot the line between the truth and the story she had cooked up. Charlie seemed to think this was acceptable as he went to help her up the stairs.

"No, Dad, it's okay. I don't want to get you sick too."

He removed his hands from her and nodded. He seemed to realize he could catch what she had. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'll be fine. Just going to go to sleep. Bella should be home soon."

He shook his head again as approval as she went to walk up the stairs.

"Lily," he said to get her attention, "I like the hair."

She had completely forgotten about the makeover and that her look had drastically changed in the last 8 or so hours. Lily gave a fake pained smile before continuing up the stairs to her room. She wondered if a shower was a good idea as she went to her room.

She had so many more questions that had been forgotten in the heat of the car as Edward had driven her home. Lily knew there was time, but she needed to process everything that had happened to her and because of her. She needed to truly comprehend all that transpired before she asked anything else, but she also knew she _had_ to ask.

She needed to understand what was happening. She switched off her phone, not wanting to be disturbed by anything, even Jacob tonight. She knew she would have nightmares and she needed to be alone with them tonight. Hopefully she wouldn't keep Bella up.

She dressed in the only pajamas she had left here before her trip. She slid into her bed, pulling the covers up to her chin and then eventually over her head. Should she go ahead and tell Charlie she had just killed someone? Let him deal with it? He was a trained officer, but she was sure he had no idea how to deal with that. She finally decided she'd choose what to do next with Bella, in the morning. She was glad there was a whole day to discuss everything. She needed her sister, but first she needed sleep. Nothing would be accomplished tonight so she resigned herself to her nightmares as she closed her eyes.


	10. The Talk

Thanks for reading everyone! Sorry this chapter took a little longer than expected, but it's here finally! Don't forget to head over to mrsalicehale ((do))((t)) wordpress ((do))((t)) com for all the latest! The story is updated there first and there's always a teaser before the new chapters are out!

* * *

Bella made her way down to the kitchen and noticed it was still dark outside. The rain was coming down in sheets and she checked the clock on the ancient, white microwave to confirm the time. She yawned as she noticed it read just how early it was and she knew more sleep was needed. Bella was curious what had woken her so suddenly as she trudged back up the stairs that lead to her room.

Her eyes darted to the bed right beside the door and to her sister's outline beneath the covers as she walked back in. The worry that had apparently woken her was present now in the pit of her stomach. Her sweet, innocent, and until last night, naive sister had her world turned upside down in the matter of a couple of minutes. Bella desperately wanted to shake her awake and make sure she was okay, but she knew she needed sleep too.. maybe even a little bit more.

Bella had already come to terms with all that Lily had learned last night really existed in the world around her. She wondered if Lily would handle it as serenely, or as Edward had put it psychotically, as she had. Lily had certainly been surprising Bella, and everyone else, since she'd arrived and she was sure this wouldn't be different. The pale purple, gossamer curtains rippled slightly and Bella turned her head in their direction knowing just who she would find.

Edward stood by her bed in all his magnificence, but was blocked by the many bags he was carrying. He started to put them down next to the divided closet and Bella scanned over everything before questioning him with her eyes. Edward's only reply was to look pointedly at Lily's sleeping form and realization hit her that this must be all they had purchased on their trip. Bella was a little surprised Alice hadn't used it as an excuse to check up on things by dropping everything off herself later. She walked over to her bed and sat on the edge, her body not ready to relax just yet. Edward moved next to her and began to extract the sheets and comforter.

Bella shook her head before saying in hushed tones, "How's everyone?"

"You mean how's Alice?" Edward corrected, "and she's upset, but she thinks Lily needs space."

Bella nodded and turned to lay down, "How's Lily?"

"I told Lily last night that I wouldn't invade her privacy anymore, Bella."

She was a little taken aback by his bold attitude with her, but she understood nonetheless. He was respecting what little privacy he could give her sister and she did appreciate it. It was all too much though and it was eating at Bella. Despite his inability Edward seemed to be reading her thoughts.

"I will let you know if there is a need," Edward spoke softly.

Bella nodded again and yawned wide once more causing Edward to chuckle and wrap the blankets snugly around them both. She wanted to continue their conversation, but her eyes wouldn't cooperate and she allowed them to shut and pull her back under.

* * *

"Bella," a voice was saying somewhere far away, "Bella."

She realized that it was Charlie and he was attempting to wake her up without waking up Lily; saying her name in quiet, but hurried tones. Bella sat upright and rubbed her eyes noticing the sun had finally risen and had beaten away the clouds from earlier.

"Yeah?"

"Jacob's on the phone," Charlie said, motioning for her to follow him out of the room.

They walked down together and Charlie seemed to be in a hurry as he took the steps two at a time. He was already dressed for the day and she instantly felt silly still in her pajamas. Bella took note of the sun's position finally and it registered how much later she had slept than was normal for her. Charlie almost bounded back into the other room and to the television, continuing his normal '_Sunday Afternoon_' routine.

"Hello," Bella said, her voice still groggy. She coughed once to try and clear the sleep from it.

"Bella?" Jacob questioned, slight panic in his voice, "everything okay?"

"Yeah. Sorry Jake. We both slept in," she added the next bit quieter, "She's still asleep."

"Oh," Jake said, his voice sounded instantly deflated, "Sorry. Her phone was just going straight to voicemail. I just…"

He didn't really need to finish the thought or even explain to Bella why he'd called. It was plainly obvious to Bella last night just how much Jacob cared for Lily. Everything had been written on his face clear as day; he loved her. She wasn't sure whether it was the imprint situation or real, but it was there.

"Jake. It's fine. I'll let her know you called as soon as she wakes up. Promise."

"Okay. Thanks Bells."

Silence rang on the other end before Jacob finally hung up and Bella repeated his movements, replacing the phone on the hook. She looked over and noticed that Charlie hadn't moved an inch since he'd returned to his seat. Without another word she went back to her room and opened the door as quietly as possible, cursing the old hinges as they protested the movement loudly. Bella's eyebrows creased as she looked down and noticed that Lily wasn't under her blankets like she had been when Bella had left. Her heart skipped a couple of beats as she noticed that Lily was staring right back at her on the edge of the bed, feet folded underneath her. She seemed to be clutching the pillow to her chest and her eyes shot downward.

"Didn't mean to scare you," Lily said, voice barely above a whisper.

Bella swallowed to wash down the lump that had formed in her throat and shut the door behind her. She smiled gingerly at Lily even though she wasn't looking and went to sit on her own bed. Lily made no signs that she had any intention of carrying on a conversation, but Bella knew it was probably necessary. She didn't want to do this anymore than Lily seemed to want to. Bella was never to the one to initiate any conversation, much less a difficult one like this was sure to be.

She cleared her throat again, "Lily, umm, I think we should talk, or, umm, did you have any questions?" Bella asked, awkwardly.

Lily took a deep breath before looking up, "Oh, you know, just about a million," and she laughed uneasily.

That moment seemed to diffuse a little bit of a tension that was swimming in the room, threatening to swallow them whole. Bella was smiling despite the seriousness of the situation and was happy that Lily seemed to be handling this fairly well; her sarcasm fully intact.

"So," Lily continued, "your boyfriend's a vampire, huh?"

Both girls burst into hysterics at the honest, but absurd observation by Lily. Bella couldn't seem to catch her breath as tears starting to spring into her eyes from all the laughter. It died out slowly for both of them before they ended, smiling at one another.

"Yeah," Bella conceded, the last laughs escaping her lips "he is."

"How long have you known?"

"For a while," Bella confessed, not entirely sure what was okay to admit.

"And there are good and bad vampires?"

"Yes. Edward and his family are good."

"The eyes?"

"The eyes change color based on what type of blood."

"So, Edward doesn't kill people then?"

"No."

Lily seemed to be contemplating something as she chewed on her bottom lip nervously and it made Bella grin internally. Reneé did the exact same thing when she was too nervous to say or ask something. Bella had the urge to tell her to '_spit it out_' like she did their mother on occasion.

"You can ask me whatever," Bella offered, when Lily didn't say anything more.

"What does it mean?"

Bella was a little confused by her question and her head tilted to the side slightly, "What does what mean?"

"What does it mean that I'm a slayer?"

"Oh," Bella said. She had been ready for just about every question, but she didn't really know how to answer that. "I don't think it means anything really."

"I won't kill anyone else?"

Her voice was instantly thick and Bella realized at once what Lily had really been asking initially. She was afraid she was going to go on a killing spree that no one would be able to stop. Before Bella could halt the movement she was sitting on Lily's bed and rubbing her knee, attempting to soothe her sister.

"No," Bella said, firmly, "First of all, there aren't a ton of vampires hanging around. The closest anyone else usually is to us is Alaska."

A single tear slid down Lily's cheek and she quickly wiped it away, but she couldn't seem to stop her trembling chin.

"Second, that was an accident. You didn't know any more than we did what you were. There isn't usually a newborn outbreak this close to home?"

Now it was Lily's turn to look confused, "Excuse me? Newborn?"

Bella realized at once there was so much that hadn't been covered last night and she wasn't really sure what all Edward had filled her in on. She was now determined to give Lily as much information as she could; she was in this too whether Bella wanted her to be or not.

"So, I'll tell you what I know, but I don't know everything."

Lily just shook her head and pulled the pillow in her lap a little closer.

"When someone transforms into a vampire they're called a newborn. For a little while they're just bloodthirsty and uncontrollable. Their eyes are red because their own human blood is still in their system. It seems like there's a little outbreak, of sorts, in Seattle and we don't really know what's going on."

She took a breath she didn't know she was waiting for and noticed Lily looked ready to talk again. Bella motioned that it was okay to interrupt.

"Is someone making them? Or do you, kind of, create vampires by accident?"

"Jasper seems to be convinced someone is making them, but I didn't get a lot of out of him so I don't know why they would be… or who might be doing it."

"And you don't create a vampire by accident," Bella added.

"Why doesn't anyone stop them?"

"Well," Bella started, now a little apprehensive, "there's not a lot of people that could stop them. I mean, they're really strong when they're newborn."

"So the police couldn't just go in and stop the murders," Lily stated.

"No," Bella agreed.

"Have you ever heard of a slayer before?"

"No, but Edward and Carlisle seemed to have. We can ask them more when you're ready if you want."

"Who could stop them?"

Lily seemed to ask the one question Bella didn't want to answer. She had already been given a lot of information that would be terrifying. Bella just knew the Volturi and their purpose would be the tipping point that would send Lily screaming out of the house.

"Well, umm, the Volturi."

Lily's eyebrows hiked up high at the mention of their name and Bella instantly regretted being honest.

"They're like a vampire royal family, I guess. They enforce laws and whatever."

Lily's eyes narrowed to almost slits as she seemed to be determining the validity of the statement, "And?"

"And last year I met them. They're super old and super scary and I was terrified and surprised I lived," Bella blurted out, a little surprised at the disclosure. She had never really talked about this with anyone except Edward. It was strange to hear her own deep-seeded feelings coming to the surface so easily.

Now Lily's eyes were as round as saucers as she took in just what Bella had just let slip. It must all seem so bizarre to someone who hadn't instantly accepted everything like she had.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you met them?"

"Umm, hmm. Well it's a really long story."

"I have all day," Lily said, now stretching out her legs and leaning against the wall behind her, attempting to get more comfortable.

Bella smirked at her, "Maybe in a little bit. I'm kinda hungry."

As if on cue Lily's stomach rumbled its irritation and they laughed again, but this time not nearly as much as before. Bella pushed off the bed and headed for the door.

"I have more questions," Lily said.

"I know."

* * *

The day had continued like it had begun: the girls deep in conversation. They had covered a lot of topics as the afternoon wore on. She was astounded at how much information she really knew about vampires and all they involved. Lily was as frustrated as Bella at the lack of real information on the internet regarding slayers though. Most of what they had found as they poured over a dozen different websites was the one slayer Lily had referenced last night: Buffy. There was no Giles lurking around the corner to give them any insight to their new dilemma so they agreed to ask Carlisle soon.

Bella was more than surprised that Jacob hadn't come barging in the door when Lily hadn't returned his phone call. She just wasn't ready to give Lily over to anyone else right now when they had revealed so much to each other. She was more than relieved when Lily had shrugged off Jacob's phone call and request to call back in lieu of talking to Bella more. She knew it was selfish, but in this instance she didn't care. They were also getting along better than anyone hoped, especially Bella. She just knew the minute Lily had discovered all Bella was hiding she would hate her for it. As per Lily's usual she soaked up all Bella could give her regarding not only vampires, but their mother and father. They had to find Charlie suitable subjects in the off chance he was ever listening when they were downstairs. He didn't seem keen on bothering them so they seemed safe as long as they didn't mention the supernatural.

Bella had also learned a little more of Lily's life and her would-be parents. It was a scandalous, to say the least, and it was hard to hear at times. Apparently, the woman who had abducted Lily from the hospital had told people she had adopted Lily legally. The man she married had no idea, or so he said so far, that the story wasn't the truth. She had been pushed into pageants and still wasn't quite sure the real reason. Lily's "mother" had become increasingly delusional and aggressive as Lily got older and began to question things. Even now, with the threat of a criminal trial looming, she was still trying to contact her to say everything was Lily's fault somehow. Bella couldn't stop the maternal feelings she had toward Lily, as she also bizarrely had for their real mother, and the anger at this person she didn't know.

Bella had tried to curb the blind hatred forming by bringing up Reneé and how similar Lily was to her. Now that Lily's true hair color had emerged she realized just how much like their mother Lily actually looked. The freckles covering her face instead of makeup was a little jarring initially, but certainly more naturally beautiful. The conversation flowed seamlessly from one thing to the next and they agreed on the Jacksonville trip before they acknowledged dinner was probably a necessity. Lily sat on the counter as they rehashed their plans to Charlie and Bella reheated dinner.

"That's great," Charlie said, clearly excited, "I know your Mom would love that."

"I'll call her tomorrow and let her know," Bella stated, smiling.

Charlie nodded and headed back to his normal spot and the girls returned to their conversation.

"So, how long have you and Edward been together?"

Bella blushed, "Since right after I got here."

She wasn't ready to talk about last year and their lapse in relationship just yet with Lily. She couldn't stop the shudder that rippled quietly through her body at the thought either.

"Are you guys going to the same college?" Lily asked.

Lily waited for Bella's answer as she smiled, "Yeah. I mean," she lowered her voice considerably, "it's kind of a difficult situation next year."

Lily looked appropriately puzzled and Bella continued, "I might be starting a new life next year."

Realization dawned on Lily's face at once and Bella wished they had started this topic upstairs. Her face dropped and she got off the counter, shoulders now slumped as she walked over to the tiny, kitchen table.

Bella followed concerned,"What's wrong?"

"You'd leave me that quick?"

That particular question knocked the wind out of Bella and she staggered slightly on the spot. She had thought of waiting to spend more time with Lily recently anyway, but the way she had phrased it made her see everything differently. She had a whole lifetime of memories with Charlie and Reneé, but with Lily, her sister, she didn't and now she was considering whether she'd be ready to give that up at all.

"I was thinking of waiting," Bella admitted quickly.

"Oh."

The microwave dinged and Bella didn't move as she continued to stare at Lily's face. Every feature seemed to scream at Bella to be memorized as the severity of the situation seemed to hit her completely. She finally turned to retrieve their dinner and dulled out the portions before bringing Lily her plate.

They ate in silence and Bella kept returning to Lily's face when she wasn't watching her. When they finished Bella wondered if Lily was abandoning their conversation completely as she went into the living room with Charlie.

"I think I'm going to go upstairs and do some homework before bed," Lily said to Charlie.

"Okay. Do you think you'll be okay for school tomorrow?"

"Yeah. I feel better."

She turned and went straight for the stairs as Bella herself walked into the living room with Charlie and sat down. She needed a couple of minutes before she confessed the deepest details of her transition with Lily. Charlie never looked her way just once as she sat on the couch before finally getting up.

"I'm going to see if she needs help," Bella said finally.

"Okay, Bells. Night."

She started to go over the plan in her head as she walked upstairs. Now that she was going to have to confess it to someone other than Edward she noticed it seemed a bit thoughtless. Bella needed to seriously consider the ramifications of this action now that Lily was in her life. Everything had changed and that certainly wasn't a bad thing, but it required a new look.

When she opened the door Lily was riffling through the untouched bags on the floor near the closet. She was pulling everything out and laying it on her bed as Bella walked in.

"Wow," Bella commented, "You got a lot?"

"Yeah. Thank God too, I was about to freeze to death."

Lily showed Bella everything, piece by piece, before hanging it up or putting it away in drawers. They continued to talk, but not about the issue that had clearly struck a nerve with them both.

"Edward proposed," Bella finally blurted out.

Lily turned slowly and gawked at her before coming over to give her a hug, "Bella that's great!"

Her cheeks were burning as Lily released her and looked up at her.

"I made a lot of plans before I knew you."

"I know. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you upset. I'm just scared. I can't imagine not being able to see you.. even for a little bit."

"I really was, I mean am," she corrected quickly, "thinking of postponing."

"Bella," Lily said, taking her hands, "just make the right decisions for you. I will be fine."

"The right decisions have changed though."

Lily grinned wide at the comment before walking back over to the last bit of clothes. She finally gathered her new, plaid pajamas and headed into the bathroom, leaving Bella to her many thoughts. Her head was spinning and she was unable to get a grip on any one single thought buzzing through her mind. She needed to let Edward know sooner, rather than later, that she had the intention of waiting. This would require more logistics regarding her safety and that of her family for much longer than was discussed, but she knew Edward would be ecstatic regardless. She wondered if he would relax his other terms regarding their engagement and ultimate marriage. Bella had an errant thought run through her mind's eye before she could stop it and she resolved to deal with that the next time she saw Edward. She had her own terms now that she would be waiting, but she hoped any of what she was wondering about was negotiable. Lily was entering their room in the next second and Bella smiled over at her as she began to get her own pajamas together.

"So," she said, facing away from Lily, "have you talked to Jake?"

"No. Phone's been off," Lily said, wringing out her hair with the towel and shrugging.

"Well," Bella started, "at least I'm not alone anymore with a supernatural boyfriend I can never really talk about."

"Yep. Now that I know you can dish to me like normal."

"Yeah. And so can you."

"About?"

"Jake. His wolf thing."

Lily stopped moving and simply stared back at Bella, "Excuse me?"

Bella's heart was now pounding in her chest and she was powerless to stop it. It had never occurred to her that Edward hadn't told her last night all about Jacob. She turned slowly on the spot to take in Lily's reaction. Bella cringed away from the anger spewing from Lily's eyes and she looked down at her bare feet on the wooden floor.

"What wolf thing?" she asked, speaking through her teeth.

Bella sighed and swallowed hard before answering, "He.. umm… turns into a wolf."

Lily laughed humorlessly at the new announcement and rubbed her hands over her face. She sighed a couple of times and finally sat on her bed, still holding the towel in her hands. Bella finally ventured a look at her face again and was shocked to see tears slipping down her cheeks.

"He lied."

"I don't think he meant to lie. He's not really supposed to say anything."

"Well neither is Edward and he told you."

"No, I mean, he physically can't tell. It's complicated and you really, really need to talk to him. This is his thing."

"Does anyone else have a _thing_ they need to tell me?"

"No," Bella spat back, not meaning to.

Lily walked out of the room without another word and Bella made no motion to stop her. She obviously needed a moment to collect her thoughts, but Bella prayed she wasn't reaching her breaking point. She cursed herself for not having asked Edward more about what was said before she put her foot in her mouth. Lily needed to talk to Jacob as soon as possible, but she seemed to be operating under the same train of thought Bella always had: a half-truth or omission of the truth is still a lie. As far as Lily seemed to be concerned Jacob had lied to her and she was downright livid. Bella, in no way, blamed her, but if she thought this was bad Lily would come unglued when Jacob revealed how much he'd withheld from her willingly.

Bella would just have to be there for Lily whenever she was ready and however she needed her. Lily had dealt with so much already in her life and the last 24 hours was no exception. _Poor Lily_, Bella thought, _how is anyone supposed to manage all of this? _Maybe this trip to see their mother was just what Lily needed. If Bella was being truthful she needed one too. Being around Edward and his family constantly was definitely heady and she would, one day, be them. She needed to see her mother and Phil and get away from the supernatural haven that was Forks, Washington.

Hopefully, Lily was still willing to go. Bella would just have to explain it the way she had just realized: they needed a break from all this. It was going to be okay. For once, Bella actually believed that. Yeah, sure, there was a newborn army in Seattle and the Volturi could come at any moment and kill her for not being a vampire already. Oh, and she couldn't forget Victoria who was hellbent on finding her and killing her too. She shook her head to get the thoughts of all those who desired her demise and resolved that it would be okay because she would make it. She had her sister now and they both needed this to be okay. Lily needed, more than anything, to see that those around her had the best intentions at heart. Bella could give her that and she would; she would make Lily see it.

* * *

Keep those reviews coming guys! I love seeing everyone's reactions! xoxo, MrsAliceHale


	11. Jacob

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* * *

Lily laid on the couch, staring at the ceiling, for longer than was necessary, but she didn't want to get up and face the day. She was about to pretend that all the fantastical things she'd discovered over the weekend didn't exist and she didn't know if she really even wanted to. How could so many people live this close to all these otherworldly beings and not even know? Lily had to admit that even she, with her until recently latent abilities, had pushed aside her instincts based on the way Edward and his family presented themselves. She guessed it wasn't that hard to believe people were so oblivious to everything.

She pulled the pillow out from underneath her head, placed it over her face, and gave a low, frustrated groan, before finally sitting up. The blankets Charlie had placed on her last night fell to the floor with the sudden movement. Lily hadn't meant to sleep on the couch, but also wasn't keen on returning to the room with Bella either so it had provided a nice solution. She couldn't remember the last time she had been so angry as when Bella had spilled the beans about Jacob last night. She had been visibly shaking as she walked into the living room with Charlie, intent on taking her mind off things.

The thing that made her most mad was that Jacob knew just how she felt about being lied to. She had confided in him so deeply, more so than any other person, more so than even Bella, and he had lied to her. Lily had been put through the ringer, and not just recently, and this certainly stung the worst. After Charlie had gone upstairs finally, while she feigned sleep, she had cried until all the tears had gone. It had not been a peaceful sleep and she knew she'd pay for it this morning. She wasn't really sure why, but she was a little frustrated with Bella. Not because she had told her, but maybe because now she associated this horrible feeling with her sister. It certainly wasn't Bella's fault and Lily would work on moving past it, at least with her, as best she could.

She moved quietly through the house knowing Bella was still asleep. Thankfully Charlie had left even earlier than usual and she was allowed a couple more minutes of peace. Her bare feet padded along the faded linoleum as she walked toward the coffee maker, one of the few things she had brought with her. She hadn't really used it, but she knew today it would be her lifesaver. Lily pushed all the necessary buttons and gathered everything she'd need to make that wonderful caffeinated beauty.

As the small, ceramic mug filled she walked to the refrigerator to get the creamer that rested on the top shelf. She poured in what she wanted and moved to the small kitchen table to sit down with the now warm cup clutched tightly in her hands. Lily blew a couple of times over the top causing it to ripple before she took the first sip. She moaned appreciatively as it seemed to warm her whole body and she let it take its effects before she went for another swig. Before she was ready she heard Bella's footsteps coming down the stairs towards her. Lily wasn't prepared just yet as the coffee hadn't taken its full impact on her brain; she didn't want to lash out at Bella.

Bella flipped on the switch without looking around and her eyes crinkled as they adjusted. Lily followed suit as she let her own eyes adjust to the sudden brightness and gave a smirk as Bella finally looked her way.

"Oh God, I'm sorry!" Bella exclaimed, reaching to turn the light back out.

"No. It's fine."

Nothing more was said as Bella removed her hand from the light switch, leaving it on, and going to the cabinets to retrieve her breakfast. Lily continued to take small drinks of the still piping hot beverage as she half-watched Bella move throughout the kitchen. She never did turn around and Lily wondered if she planned on eating that cereal over the sink. Lily kicked the only other chair out with her foot and Bella turned around at the noise. She made a motion with her head that Bella should take it and she obliged, but walked over hesitantly. Lily gave a more good-natured smile as Bella joined her and was happy that she returned it with one of her own.

"I thought I'd take my truck today," Bella said, dismissively, "I mean, it's not as nice as Edward's car, but I don't want it to think I'm mad at it or anything."

Lily chuckled at Bella's love for her vehicle, "Of course. That'd be great."

"How'd you sleep?"

"Good. That couch is more comfortable than it looks."

Bella just smiled uncomfortably at her and Lily realized that she could have gotten away with Bella never knowing where she slept. Lily hadn't meant to make Bella upset at her sleeping arrangements, but she resolved that there should be no more secrets; not even small ones. Bella continued to eat in silence and the only sounds heard were of her crunching cereal and Lily's slurping as she drank.

The morning remained the same, in silence, as both went about their own way getting ready. Lily spent extra time picking out an outfit, something she had planned to do last night, as she finally had plenty to choose from. She reached over and opened the window to feel the temperature and noticed it was stuck, which was strange as it was usually open slightly. She made sure the locks were open before trying again, putting a little bit more behind it this time and it didn't budge. She frowned and looked over the window once more before resigning herself to leaving it be. It obviously didn't want to be opened and Lily went to her bed, where her phone now lay. She browsed through a couple of screens before landing on the one that displayed the weather. She pursed her lips as it showed just how cold it was going to be today. Even though she was more than equipped to deal with this she didn't particularly like the cold, despite having new clothes to show off.

She dressed quickly as Bella was in the bathroom putting the finishing touches on her own look. As Bella's morning routine required much less than Lily's she was finished first as usual. Lily finally grabbed a coat out of the closet and went to the bathroom, pulling her hair into a loose bun on top of her head. She thought momentarily of taking the time to fix her hair as it was definitely going to be a shock to most, but she ultimately decided against it as she wasn't in the mood. She traipsed back downstairs finally and noticed Bella on the phone, talking quietly. Lily waiting in the hallway as Bella finished her conversation and grabbed her keys, turning to head out the door.

Both girls walked side by side as they headed for the truck, Lily looking down at her phone. She flipped the toggle switch on her phone that took it out of airplane mode. Lily was completely unprepared for the barrage of messages that flooded in almost instantly as service was restored to her phone. She fought with the volume switch on the side as more messages continued, turning it down to silent as her phone caught up. She laid it in the large seat between them as she turned to buckle herself up and smiled as the large truck sprang to life. Bella was certainly right: It was drastically different than Edward's car, but Lily liked it much better. The slight moldy smell stung her nose as she took in the faded and cracked interior.

They trudged along to school and Lily wondered if the ancient truck would even make it the short drive. It seemed to be on it's last leg as they pulled into the small parking lot, taking a spot near the back. Lily's eyes caught Edward's as Bella put the car in park and he didn't appear to like her taking her own car. She was a little hopeful that had more to do with Bella's wheezing vehicle and less to do with Edward's lack of control in the situation. She scolded herself silently remembering that Edward could hear her every thought. Lily wasn't sure how far this gift extended, but she probably shouldn't test it and she worked on putting more pleasant thoughts to the forefront of her mind.

Bella hopped out of her truck and all but raced over Edward, who seemed thrilled with her sudden appearance. Lily watched as he held out his hand for her to take and as they laced their fingers together, walking towards the door. Alice walked to stand next to Lily as she neared the group also and Lily didn't even turn to acknowledge anyone was there. She didn't need to see Alice's hurt expression to know it was there as they walked in silence through the hallways.

Lily took her phone out of her back pocket finally and placed it in her bag without even bothering to look at it now. She knew there would be plenty from Jacob to catch up on at lunch or even after school and she wasn't really in the mood just now. Lily walked the rest of the way to her locker never taking her eyes from Edward's back, trying desperately to think of completely boring thoughts until she was alone again. It was a bizarre feeling to know that not even your thoughts were your own anymore and she finally took the left off the main hallway that lead to her locker.

Lily finally looked over at Alice as they took the last couple of steps toward the small, metal locker and she forced a half smile. Alice returned with one of her own dazzling smiles and hopped slightly. She had seemed to take that as confirmation that Lily didn't completely hate her and she was glad, that was the intention but she knew she would have to hash all this out with Alice soon. Lily heaved a great sigh as she took out the correct books and placed them in her bag, slinging one strap over her shoulder and continuing to her first class.

Neither girl talked as they resumed their course to the classroom, but Lily noticed that people were stopping to stare. It finally dawned on her that her appearance had changed so drastically that this probably wasn't a entirely unacceptable response. Lily smiled to those who eyes she caught staring and thankfully they smiled back. She hoped that this would be enough for the small school to talk about so her behavior at learning all she did wouldn't seem too out of the ordinary.

Just as she rounded the corner to walk in the door she was joined by none other than Mike Newton, with a wide and slightly goofy grin on his face. Lily couldn't help the skeptical look that graced her features as they crossed the threshold together. Her response seemed to cause his own to falter as he then began to stare at his feet as they walked to their desks. Lily took her normal spot on the end of the row with Bella and Edward and shrugged to them as she sat down. Hopefully Edward and his newly found gift would shed some light on Mike's strange behavior as the normal school routine began.

As per the usual, Lily was lost in her own thoughts, though they weren't their normal style knowing that she probably had an audience. She couldn't seem to concentrate fully and was more than once reminded to pay attention as Edward let out a very low, soft cough to drag her back to the classroom lecture. Bella took notes for their small group though no one truly needed them. It was clear Bella liked having something to do and without that distraction she might take to simply staring at Edward. Lily doodled on her notebook slightly so that it might still appear that she was taking notes and it also allowed her mind to go momentarily blank.

The bell rang and everyone collected their things, but surprisingly when Lily stood up to continue to her next class none other than Mike was standing there waiting patiently. She looked back to Edward who was suddenly avoiding her gaze and huffed as she headed out, Mike on her heels.

"So, how was your weekend?" Mike started, without any indication from Lily that he should.

She clutched her notebook to her chest harder as she sped up and said, "Oh. It was fine." Lily wasn't sure where the sudden interest was coming from, but she didn't like it. She knew how delicate her relationship was with the other girls in their group and she knew that Lauren had laid claim long before Lily arrived. Regardless if they were actually in a relationship Lily knew that Lauren wouldn't like how Mike was looking at her now.

She hoped she wouldn't need to be too direct with Mike as she was sure it would hurt his fragile ego. Lily reminded herself that if it was necessary to keep drama at bay she would do it. She was enjoying the quiet, boring life she had experienced at Forks High School and didn't want to change that. He jogged slightly to keep up with her power walk, but didn't continue the conversation. He waved halfheartedly as she practically leapt through the door to her next class, mumbling a goodbye that she didn't' return. She wasn't going to be to blame in the event that Mike go the wrong idea, that was for sure.

Lily had forgotten she shared this class with Alice as she walked in and silently cursed herself and Mike for getting here so early. There would be no choice but to be confronted by Alice as their teacher rarely started on time anyway. Thankfully she wasn't here yet and Lily took the seat beside hers quietly, maybe she could ignore her for a little while longer. She wasn't sure she could stop herself from saying things she wasn't supposed to when she talked to Alice again. Lily needed some semblance of privacy before she finally spoke to her best girlfriend once more.

Lily pulled out another notebook, but began to doodle on it just like the last and only looked up as the bell rang and Alice skirted into the class. Lily couldn't help but see the defeated look Alice had on her face as she took the seat next to her. She wanted to reach out and comfort Alice, but she knew now was not the time and Lily was happier just now hanging on to her bitterness for a little while longer.

She never turned again to Alice as class finally began and even after they were told to work in pairs to finish a page from their workbook. Alice, in turn, didn't even speak to Lily and they completed their assignment in silence. Lily was bursting to talk to Alice about everything, but she needed to quiet one more issue in her mind before she fell back into her typical behavior.

They finally walked to the cafeteria in the same stony silence before Lily decided she could take no more.

"Edward told me what you can do," she finally spat out.

Alice turned to face her finally, but she didn't seem shocked. Apparently she was clued in to the events of last night probably more so than Lily. This caused the anger to flare slightly in her chest again as she stared back to Alice, wondering if she could say more without yelling.

"Did you know?" Lily finally asked the question that had been burning her alive.

Alice stopped in the middle of the hallway and faced her fully, "About?"

"About me," Lily said, quieter than before, "About what I was going to do to that guy. Did you know I was going to…"

She trailed off unable to complete that sentence even if no one else was listening. Despite what Edward had said last night she definitely still felt like a murderer and saying it out lout would make it that much more horrifying. Alice was shaking her head vehemently in response to Lily's accusation.

"Of course not."

Alice didn't offer anything else, but this seemed to quiet the previously raging monster within. She needed more information and looked around at her classmates walking the hall with them to see if anyone else was paying attention to them.

"Alice, I…" Lily started, unsure of what she was meaning to ask.

"I didn't know because you didn't know," Alice stated, plainly, "I only know what's going to happen when people decide something. You didn't decide to do that. It just… happened."

Suddenly realization washed over Lily as the full weight of Alice's words hit her, she thought Alice saw everything and this made so much more sense too. They walked into the cafeteria finally and no one seemed the wiser about their exchange as they took seats around the table, Jasper finally taking his spot beside Alice. He had obviously purposely given them space as they worked this out and it occurred to Lily that Alice had probably seen this happening since she had decided to approach Alice about her problem with it all.

Lily took a deep steadying breathe as she looked around the table at all her friends, finally genuinely smiling. Everyone broke into compliments about her new attire and hair color as soon as she sat down. Lily thanked everyone individually for their kind words before getting up to go and get some food. She secretly wished that the most drastic thing that had happened to her this weekend had been her makeover as she returned to the table.

Bella leaned over to Lily and whispered, "Have you turned on your phone yet?"

Lily shook her head as she took a bite of her food, chewing carefully before answering, "Why?"

"Oh, you know, Jacob just wanted to talk," Bella said, sarcastically while smiling.

Lily chuckled low before reaching in her bag to retrieve the device finally, hoping that all the messages had been received. Her eyes nearly boggled in her head as she noticed the number indicating the volume of alerts from Jacob alone. She swallowed hard as she scrolled through everything before finally deciding to go to the most recent, which surprisingly was only a couple of minutes ago. She read it a couple of times before deciding the best way to respond and stowed the phone back. Lily turned to Angela and told her about her phone being off on accident yesterday and the day before and that's why she hadn't returned her texts. Angela, of course, was kind about the whole ordeal and issued her own compliment about Lily's new look before returning to the group as a whole.

School continued in the normal, mundane way for the rest of the day but with the new annoyance of the ever-present Mike now looming. On the way to her final class of the day she had accidentally shouted at him wanting to know his intentions as it all became too much. He simply mumbled something incoherent which Lily only caught pieces of before retreating to his own class. She shook her head at the outburst, but knew better than to apologize in case he took it as flirtation.

The clock seemed to be in a sort of accelerated speed as the last hour zoomed by and she was standing next to Edward's car. She knew it had everything to do with the fact that she had agreed to meet Jacob after school at her house in a couple of moment's time. Lily hoped she was ready for whatever was meeting her there, but was too scared to ask Alice the outcome either way. She waved to Bella and Edward as they walked to her truck and Lily and Alice got into Edward's Volvo.

At first they continued their silence from before, but this time it had everything to do with the knots forming in Lily's stomach.

"You're going to go a great time in Jacksonville," Alice said, almost too quietly.

Lily turned to face Alice and it took her a minute to understand what she'd said, "Really?"

Alice beamed, "Yeah. You'll have fun. It's warmer than here for sure."

Lily paused, wondering now which she was more nervous about: Jacob and that argument or meeting her mother for the first time. She deciding on the first thing as she began to tell Alice how she was feeling finally.

"I have no idea what I'm going to say to him. I just know I'm mad," she admitted finally.

Alice giggled and shook her head, "I would be mad too, but I'm sure it's going to be fine."

Lily was a little confused by Alice's lack of certainty in that last comment, but shook it off anyway.

"Is my Mom nice?" she asked, unable to stop it from escaping her lips.

"Yes," Alice said, confidently again.

The small silver car pulled into the driveway before she was ready and there on her steps was her Jacob. A smile pulled at her lips before she could help it as he started to walk to the edge of their woods. She opened the door quickly and turned to give Alice another smile before getting out of the car, almost forgetting her things in the back seat.

Lily walked slowly to small forest in their backyard taking slow and calming breaths. Jacob held out his hand for hers, as Edward had earlier with Bella, as she neared and Lily took it before she could stop the action, she was forgetting to be mad at him. Jacob took a steadying breath of his own and it somehow reassured her that he was just as nervous as her.

"Lily, I am so, so, so, so…," he immediately begin to apologize, but Lily held up a hand and he trailed off.

"Jacob," she started, putting her hand back down at her side, "I can deal with just about everything else, but no more lies."

He nodded and his head suddenly hung in embarrassment and she closed the small gap between them, hugging him tightly. Jacob instantly returned the embrace and let his head fall in the familiar way on top of hers. They stood there for an indeterminate amount of time, though it didn't really matter to either of them. Lily took to counting the rises and falls of his chest as she was up against it, not caring to break the hold she had on him.

She had a million things running through her head and a thousand questions she wanted to ask him, but for now she was content just being with him. Finally, he began to pull away but it only seemed so that he could look at her face.

"Like the hair," Jacob commented, twirling a piece between his fingers, "pretty."

Lily blushed as she did every time Jacob complemented her in any form and he placed a hand on her cheek. She breathed in his heady, musky scent and placed a small kiss on his hand before craning to look at him.

"So…" she began, "you weren't at a family reunion were you?"

His booming laugh reverberated off the nearby trees causing a wide grin to form for her as well. He shook his head as an answer to her question finally and went to sit on a stump and motioned for her to follow. She decided his lap was the best seat and as he didn't object he seemed to feel the same.

"No. I, um, I actually ran away from home."

He didn't offer anything further and since Lily had no intention of fighting with Jacob anymore she didn't know if she should ask why.

"Did you grow up here?"

"Yes. Well, in La Push, the reservation that's close that I told you about. Actually, your Dad and my Dad are really good friends. I've known him and Bella my whole life."

She crinkled up her nose as the jealousy took over momentarily at the fact that they had gotten more time with her Jacob. She brushed it off and laid her head on his shoulder and waited for him to continue. When he didn't immediately she decided to ask another question that was bothering her from last night instead.

"Do you like being a werewolf?"

Jacob chuckled again slightly, but not as heartily as before and surely at her brazen attitude on the subject more than anything else.

"Honestly, not really. I mean I like being able to hang out with my friends, but all in all I kind of hate all the responsibility."

"What do you mean?"

"What all did Bella tell you last night about it?"

"Just that you were a werewolf and that you would tell me more because it was your story to tell, not hers."

"Well that was nice of her," Jacob said, unable to completely keep the bitterness out of his voice.

Jacob recalled the story to Lily of becoming a werewolf for the first time, phasing, and patrols and what they're for. He touched lightly on the topic of someone named Victoria who they were trailing lately, but quickly changed the subject to his family. Lily was enthralled by everything and sat very still, but comfortably on Jacob's lap as the sun set.

Jacob yawned wide and looked down his phone finally, "Oh crap. I forgot…"

"What?" asked Lily, a little alarmed.

"Oh, umm, we're actually having dinner at your house tonight."

"We?"

"Yeah. Me and my Dad. Should we pretend we don't know each other?"

Lily contemplated this for a second wondering if she could even do that with Jacob, "It would be easier to explain."

She shrugged at her own answer and sat up and stretched before standing up. She reached a hand down for Jacob to grab and he laughed once before pulling her back down and kissing her softly. She returned the kiss with gusto and Jacob pulled away slowly chuckling again.

"We have to pretend we don't know each other, remember?"

She rolled her eyes and backed away finally and began to walk back towards the house. Lily caught sight of the police cruiser before it was too late and Jacob bade her a quick goodbye and ran off parallel to the house to keep cover.

She straightened her clothes and walked to the back door, swinging it wide as she entered and smiled at Charlie's questioning gaze.

"Where were you?" he asked, his voice slightly higher than normal.

"I just went for a walk," Lily said, realizing that she had left her phone in her bag. "Sorry, Dad. I lost track of time."

"It's okay," Charlie consented, "I was just worried. Don't go walking around by yourself though, okay?"

Charlie looked to Bella for some reason as he said this and Edward cringed as she had before at the jealousy that sparked inside of her. No one felt the need to elaborate and she nodded and walked into the kitchen where Bella and Edward sat in their normal positions. Bella had pulled out all the stops for Jacob and his father coming over, but she wasn't supposed to know that just yet.

"Wow," she said, pointing to the spread, "what's the occasion?"

"Oh. Uh. Billy and Jacob Black are coming over for dinner tonight. I hope that's okay," Charlie said before Bella had a chance.

"Of course," she said and took the chair opposite Edward who winked at her without Charlie seeing.

"Are you staying?" Lily asked Edward.

"No. I'm just about to head out."

Charlie looked at the two conversing normally quizzically and it dawned on Lily that the last time they had been together she wasn't necessarily on speaking terms with Edward. It usually consisted of eye rolling and shrugging every time that he talked and now they seemed to be comfortable in each other's company. While Lily had certainly warmed up to Edward over their time together she had forgotten that Charlie was still woefully oblivious to all she had discovered in the last 48 hours or so.

Lily popped a nearby grape into her mouth that Bella had been munching on while she made dinner and rolled her eyes at Edward for good measure. This seemed to satisfy Charlie's curiosity as he turned back to the counter to steal a couple of bites of fish before returning to the living room and his beloved television.

Lily gave Edward a strained look to convey that she had forgotten how weird this would look to Charlie and he smiled back at her. This was certainly easier now that Edward knew exactly what she was thinking as they carried on their private and silent conversation. Lily started to see how this could come in handy, but was still slightly hating privacy issues.

Edward kept the smile on his face as he stood up and walked over to Bella, hugging her from behind quickly. Lily turned to see if Charlie was watching, but should have known he wouldn't be. Edward wouldn't have chanced that with Charlie so close, he wasn't that open-minded as a Dad. He removed himself quickly and motioned for Bella to follow him for the door. Edward offered a quick wave to Lily as he left, but knew that nothing was needed for Charlie.

She hopped up as if she'd been shocked suddenly and realized she wanted to change. While she hadn't been bothered by Jacob seeing her like this she didn't want to meet his father for the first time without being more presentable. She popped another grape in her mouth and headed for the stairs, not stopping as Bella gave her a questioning look. Lily knew Edward would probably explain for her since she thought she heard him laughing.  
Lily headed straight for the closet and started to rifle through it's contents to find something suitable to wear. She couldn't remember ever being nervous to meet anyone before and noted just how many parents she'd met over the years. She didn't need to search for the answer as to why this was important to her for very long and threw her picks for the evening on her bed.

She walked over to the window to verify the curtain was closed before stripping down to change and saw Jacob arriving with his father. She thrust the curtain closed and rushed to change, almost tripping on clothes she'd left on the floor from this morning. She finally pulled the shirt over her head and charged toward the bathroom to attempt to fix her hair. Lily knew it was a lost cause as soon as she looked in the mirror, but picked up a brush and combed her hair roughly before giving up.

She heard Charlie's, Bella's and Jacob's voice below mixed with one unfamiliar one as she stood at the top of the stairs. Her heart was beating in her chest as she took the first step to join the group and she nervously flattened her shirt again. Lily gripped the railing tightly as she descended and caught Jacob's eye before anyone else's as he gave a wink. She finally reached the bottom and followed as everyone headed for the living room, Charlie finally turned right before he reached his chair.

"Oh my God," Charlie said, walking back to stand next to Lily, "Billy, this is Lily. Lily this is Billy Black."

Charlie motioned toward the stranger in the wheelchair she knew to Jacob's father and smiled wide, holding out her hand. He wheeled closer to take it his grin matching hers, "Nice to meet you, Lily."

She dropped her hand first and Billy continued to stare before finally turning back to the living room and the television. Charlie and Billy started in on a conversation about an unknown game that was supposedly the reason for the dinner party and Jacob went to hug Bella. Bella turned to him and returned the embrace before turning back to Lily and Jacob and making a bigger show than was necessary about introducing them. Lily smiled politely at Jacob and shook his hand as well before the three of them walked into the kitchen where Bella was putting the final touches on the meal.

Jacob bumped Lily's hip playfully as they entered the kitchen and she nudged him back. She turned to see if Charlie or Billy was watching and noticed Charlie was turning back to Billy and the conversation, obviously seeing their interaction. She gave Jacob as scolding a look as possible to indicate he wasn't playing along very well before she sat down at the table.

"Are we eating in here?" she asked of Bella.

"Oh," Bella said, still facing the counter, "no. We always eat in the living room when Jacob and Billy are here."

Lily nodded her head and ignored Jacob staring at her from his own seat, he was apparently going to make this difficult. Finally, Bella commented that she was finished and the two men joined the line that Lily and Jacob made for the food. Lily scooped large portions onto her plate, per the usual, and went down the line letting Bella know how great everything looked.

Lily walked into the living room to sit, balancing her large plate on her knees, and looking over as Jacob sat in the chair closest to her. She turned back quickly to make sure they aren't being watched before smiling over at him. Jacob returned the smile and she shook her head at his antics before returning to her plate. They needed to be very careful around Charlie and so far they were attracting too much unwanted attention.

Before long everyone was cramped in the too small living room, huddled around the TV. For a while the only noises were those of forks scraping against plates. Lily was certainly not going to be the first to talk and apparently neither was anyone else. Eventually, Bella moved to the kitchen with her now empty plate and the water began to run to indicate she was cleaning it off too. Lily didn't need to turn to know that Bella was standing in the doorway to the kitchen contemplating sneaking off to her room alone.

Lily was happy when Bella seemed to decide that she was needed more here than there. She took her spot between Charlie and Jacob on the couch, but still remained silent. Bella crossed her arms and looked over at the television set. Lily was certain Bella neither knew nor cared what was going on as the basketball was passed back and forth on screen.

"So," Jacob finally blurted out, "how's school going, Bells?"

Bella smiled despite the obvious tense situation and turned to face Jacob, her leg propped up on the couch now underneath her.

"It's okay. I'm glad it's almost over," she admitted sheepishly.

Something seemed to flow between them unspoken and it irked Lily before she could stop the emotion flowing through her. Lily gave her full attention back to her food again, chewing carefully on the next bite. Finally, Charlie and Billy seemed to finish too and merely placed their plates on nearby furniture and started to comment on the game before them. Apparently this was a normal occurrence between the Blacks and the Swans and suddenly Lily felt like she was intruding on a family tradition. For the first time since she'd arrived she felt like an outsider.

She was suddenly full and walked her plate into the kitchen heading towards the sink, tears welling in her eyes before she could stop them. Lily hated that this was the primary reaction to anger for her because she felt utterly weak every time it happened. She took time to clean out her plate, making sure to get all the residue off before placing it on the nearby drying rack. Jacob and Bella made their way into the kitchen too, leaving the men in the living room to themselves. He took a seat at the small table and motioned for Lily to join them when she finally turned around. She simply nodded towards Charlie and Billy in the next room, indicating she didn't think it was a good idea to appear so chummy so quickly.

Jacob just chuckled low and turned his attention back to Bella and the ugly jealousy monster reared it's head. Lily knew she couldn't be mad at either of them as they were doing exactly as they needed to, but she hated it all the same. Jacob and Bella carried on a conversation easily, it flowing from one topic to the next. Lily sat with her arms folded leaning casually against the countertop appearing to be engrossed in the conversation, but too shy to respond.

"Lily," Jacob finally spoke to her, "how do you like Forks?"

She shrugged, "It's fine."

Her arms were still folded across her chest and Bella seemed to be the first to sense the change in her mood. Jacob, however, seemed oblivious and continued to try and start a conversation with Lily.

"Do you like school?"

"Yeah. Everyone's really nice."

Jacob nodded and tried to appear the nice friend of her sister and nothing more as the talking in the living room had stopped. Lily knew that she was being listened to, but she wanted to confront Jacob and Bella regardless. She knew nothing good would come of that conversation so she tried to brush off her feelings as Bella looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"Bella," Jacob said, turning back to her, "you should bring Lily to the rez. Meet everyone."

Bella turned back to Jacob finally and had to stop the instinct to roll her eyes at him and his poorly veiled attempt to invite them to the reservation. Lily tried hard not to laugh, despite herself, at Bella's attempt to appear like this was a good idea.

"Yeah," Billy said, making Lily jump slightly, "we're having a bonfire tomorrow. You guys should come."

Charlie came and leaned against the archway not wanting to overcrowd the already crowded kitchen. He seemed to surveying everyone's actions and the conversation simultaneously. He didn't seem keen on answering Billy's request and finally responded, "Oh. I have to work late actually."

"You girls should go though," he amended quickly.

He nodded to Billy solemnly, from one father to another, before opening the fridge to grab a beer from within. Lily could tell that Charlie didn't particularly like the idea of "his girls" going to hang out with a bunch of boys from the neighboring reservation, but with his best friend, Billy, in tow he could hardly protest.

* * *

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